South is stable, defense chief reiterates

Defense Minister Dragan Sutanovac and Bujanovac Mayor Nagip Arifi agree that the situation there is stable. Sutanovac said that he and Arifi had agreed that it was not in anyone's interests to destabilize that part of Serbia and that currently, there was no indication of any such threat. South is stable, defense chief reiterates Commander-in-Chief of the Army Lieutenant-General Zdravko Ponos stressed that highly trained troops were stationed at military bases in the south, and that they were conducting their duties professionally. After his meeting with Arifi, the minister said he fully understood the municipal president’s view regarding the demilitarization of the south of Serbia, but that the military was not there to cause problems, but rather prevent them. “Our mission here is to avert clashes and violence, regardless of the fact we don’t have any such indicators as yet. We might in the future, and that’s why we are present here. Our job is to be ready for all scenarios, bearing in mind that we often hear messages in the media leading us to believe there are certain individuals who would like to destabilize not only Kosovo, but the south of the country too,” he explained. Arifi said he had asked Sutanovac to demilitarize the region and give greater powers to the local police force. “I asked the minister for guarantees that the army would not in future be as it once was, and I assure you that the citizens of Bujanovac seek peace. Citizens’ future attitudes don’t depend on themselves, but rather on Belgrade’s future approach,” said the municipal president. During a visit to Dobrosin military base, Ponos said the bases in the south were manned by well-trained professionals, and that there was currently no cause for alarm in the region. “The army is not increasing its state of alert on the basis of dates, but of events. We don’t act according to policy, but according to indicators on the ground. Currently, there are no new indicators that the army needs to respond to by increasing numbers or its military engagement. This is, in fact, preventive deployment,” said the lieutenant-general. During his visit, Sutanovac said that the army, the Defense Ministry and the government were observing the whole region, and that in the last year, there had been no destabilization there, or in Kosovo for that matter. He said that the hot spots had been outside Serbia, in Macedonia and Montenegro. Ponos, Sutanovac (Tanjug)

South is stable, defense chief reiterates

Commander-in-Chief of the Army Lieutenant-General Zdravko Ponoš stressed that highly trained troops were stationed at military bases in the south, and that they were conducting their duties professionally.

After his meeting with Arifi, the minister said he fully understood the municipal president’s view regarding the demilitarization of the south of Serbia, but that the military was not there to cause problems, but rather prevent them.

“Our mission here is to avert clashes and violence, regardless of the fact we don’t have any such indicators as yet. We might in the future, and that’s why we are present here. Our job is to be ready for all scenarios, bearing in mind that we often hear messages in the media leading us to believe there are certain individuals who would like to destabilize not only Kosovo, but the south of the country too,” he explained.

Arifi said he had asked Šutanovac to demilitarize the region and give greater powers to the local police force.

“I asked the minister for guarantees that the army would not in future be as it once was, and I assure you that the citizens of Bujanovac seek peace. Citizens’ future attitudes don’t depend on themselves, but rather on Belgrade’s future approach,” said the municipal president.

During a visit to Dobrosin military base, Ponoš said the bases in the south were manned by well-trained professionals, and that there was currently no cause for alarm in the region.

“The army is not increasing its state of alert on the basis of dates, but of events. We don’t act according to policy, but according to indicators on the ground. Currently, there are no new indicators that the army needs to respond to by increasing numbers or its military engagement. This is, in fact, preventive deployment,” said the lieutenant-general.

During his visit, Šutanovac said that the army, the Defense Ministry and the government were observing the whole region, and that in the last year, there had been no destabilization there, or in Kosovo for that matter. He said that the hot spots had been outside Serbia, in Macedonia and Montenegro.