Serbians "will march with victors on Red Square"

Serbians "will march with victors on Red Square"

According to Nikolic, "when the world is celebrating 70 years since victory over evil it is the right and duty of the Serbian army to take its honorable and deserved place among the WW2 winners."

He told the Guards - 70 of whom have been chosen to represent Serbia in the Moscow military parade - that he was "given the exceptional honor by fate" to mark with them some of the unit's most important dates.

Nikolic stressed that the Guard soldiers will on Saturday in Russia "represent each of our soldiers, and each of our citizens."

"Our Guards will march in the Serbian marching step in the same line with victors, while the whole freedom-loving world will see in them our Second World War fighters. They will march on behalf of Serbia, which has always in its history led only defensive wars, which has always been on the side of justice and freedom," the president stressed.

"We broke Nazism and fascism with four years of fighting under occupation, making huge sacrifices on the altar of freedom, just as we did in the First World War," he underlined, and added: "That is why today, when the world celebrates 70 years of victory over evil it is the right and duty of the Serbian army to take its honorable and deserved place among the winners . The honor to proudly carry the heritage of fighters against fascism, winners in both wars, has been entrusted to the oldest of the VS units, the Guard. Carry that honor with dignity," Nikolic said in his address.

Speaking about the unit's history, the president noted that it was formed 185 years ago to include in its ranks, in the past and now, "the best among us."

He mentioned the many decorations awarded to the Guard - called the First Unit of the Prince's Guard - Gvardija when it was founded by Milos Obrenovic in 1830 - and added that the its flag will "from today include the Order of the White Eagle with Swords."

Nikolic ended his speech by saying, "Long live the Serbian Army - long live Serbia!"

The ceremony at the Dedinje Barracks on Wednesday was also attended by Defense Minister Bratislav Gasic and army chief Gen. Ljubisa Dikovic, among others.