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Women in Defence System – Serbia – 2022

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National Action Plan 1325:

Serbia adopted its first five-year plan in 2010 and was among the pioneers in translating the UN women, peace and security agenda to the local level.1 The second action plan for the implementation of Resolution 1325 in Serbia was adopted in 2017, but has expired two years ago.2 In its Concluding Observations on the Fourth Periodic Report on Serbia, the CEDAW Committee recommended that Serbia allocate sufficient resources and enhance mechanisms to effectively implement, monitor and evaluate the impact of the second national action plan and undertake a mid-term evaluation of the plan without any further delay. However, despite the official announcements made in 2021,4 there seems to be no political will to start the process. The second action plan was ambitiously designed, but partially implemented.5 For example, in the second Serbian action plan, policymakers envisioned a greater focus on the localisation of NAP 1325 and conflict prevention, as well as on dealing with the past. However, this has yet to be met in the future. The Ministry of Defence reported that the lack of action plan did not stop the process of implementing the NAP 1325 guidelines in the defence system due to the existence of gender equality mechanisms and donor support, primarily UNDP/ SEESAC.

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Participation of women in the MoDs and the Armed Forces:

In principle, all positions are available to women and they are represented even in special forces’ units such as the Military Police Special Operation Battalion “Cobras” or the Special Brigade of the Serbian Armed Forces. Girls and women prepare for military service by attending military high school, the Military Academy and the Military Medical academy (VMA). Statistics from the Ministry of Defence show that the share of women among non-uniformed personnel (civilians) in the MoD and in the Serbian Armed Forces (SAF) is currently 53.72% (2022). Similar to many other countries in the region, the majority of women are engaged in civilian positions within the defence system. When it comes to the share of women among officers, non-commissioned officers (NCOs) and soldiers, Serbia has the highest percentage of women who are professional soldiers – 16.31%. However, a similar trend is not present in the higher ranks, as only 8.68%of women serve as officers and 3.04% of women are NCOs. Still, a slight increase has been noted in all the categories compared to 2019 (7% officers, 2% NCOs, 15.5 % soldiers).6

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Representation of women in command and leadership positions:

According to the available data from 2022, 14.68% of women hold leading positions in the MoD, while 5.21% of women hold command positions in the Serbian Armed Forces. The highest rank held by women in the Serbian Armed Forces is still that of Colonel, while the highest position within the MoD to which a woman has been appointed is that of Secretary of State.

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Participation of women in peacekeeping operations:

According to the Ministry of Defence, 280 members of the Serbian Armed Forces are currently participating in five UN peacekeeping operations and three EU missions, and 11.43% of them are women. Women are engaged as military observers in the SAF unit and teams, as well as in the Level 2+ military hospital and in medical teams. The SIPRI report from 2021 shows that Serbia is among the top ten contributors to UN peace operations based on the number of women members of military personnel (44 women, or 15%),7 which has been acknowledged and praised by the USG for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix.8 Despite the increase in the number of SAF members deployed in multinational operations, the data show that the percentage of women has decreased.

2022 – Balkan Defence Monitor
Women In Defence System – Serbia

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Albania-IMC-Baner

International Military Cooperation – Albania – 2022

MILITARY EXERCISES

Albania is the least transparent country in the region when it comes to disclosing exercising activities with international partners. Albanian Armed Forces’ website cannot be accessed and the MoD’s website contains very scarce information on this topic. Hence, the data presented in the graph is an estimate based on information gathered through public sources and lists provided by other countries in the region.

Similarly to other NATO member countries in the region, it participates in big multinational exercises hosted by the U.S Army in Europe and Africa and NATO, but also in regional exercises organised under the auspices of the B-9 forum and the Adriatic Charter (A5).

DONATIONS

The United States of America are the biggest foreign donor of the Albanian defence system, having donated 37 Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected (MRAP) vehicles, engineering equipment, demilitarisation funds, 29 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (Humvees), 6 military drones, CBRN equipment, 100 M-4 rifles as well as other equipment in the past three years. Turkey has donated MPT-55 rifles, 6 Ford ambulances and emergency situations equipment. Italy has donated two Lince armoured vehicles, whose value was not published.

TOP FOREIGN DONORS (2019-2021)

United States of America
EUR 42,149,169
Turkey
EUR 1,185,782

2022 – Balkan Defence Monitor
International Military Cooperation – Cratia

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North-Macedonia-DE-Baner

Defence expenditures – North Macedonia – 2022

North Macedonian defence expenditure increased around 30% between 2017 and 2020. Further increases have been planned after the country became a member of NATO in 2020. Before that, it was spending roughly 1% on the military. Defence expenditure has taken up an increasing portion of the total government spending, from 2.7%in 2017 to 5% that was planned for 2022.

2021

Share of GDP 1.43%
Share of total government
expenditure 4.02%

The Assembly of the Republic of North Macedonia usually adopts budget laws in late December, while balance sheets are adopted regularly, with some occasional delays. The MoD regularly publishes semi-annual budget realisation reports.


North Macedonian defence budget changed in 2021, as the country signed the contract to buy Stryker light armoured vehicles. This purchase altered the budget structure in favour of arms and equipment.

Similar to other countries in the region, North Macedonia uses programme budgeting, which is not sufficiently disaggregated. Budgets and balance sheets show highly aggregated sums for different programmes, and sources of funding are presented for the entire MoD budget.

* Data for 2021 and 2022 are based on the last changes in the 2021 budgets and the initial budget laws for 2022.

2022 – Balkan Defence Monitor
Defence Expeditures – North Macedonia

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Montenegro-DE-Baner

Defence expenditures – Montenegro – 2022

Montenegrin defence expenditure experienced a big increase right after the country joined NATO, in 2018 and 2019, caused by the attempt to meet the commitments made to the Alliance. However, it went backx to its earlier level in 2020. Besides the pandemic, the change of government after the 2020 elections and the subsequent
political crisis have certainly also influenced the overall budget and defence planning for the forthcoming period.

2021

Share of GDP 0.90%
Share of total government
expenditure 2.15%

The Parliament adopted the 2021 budget after a delay of more than six months. Earlier, the Government would usually provide a budget proposal to the Parliament one month before the start of the next budget year. The Parliament has never adopted any balance sheet submitted by the government even, though it is legally required to do so.

Montenegro spends the greatest share of its defence budget on personnel. This trend was shortly interrupted by the increase in arms and equipment expenditure in 2018 and 2019, when Montenegro started the procedure to procure Bell helicopters and Oshkosh armored vehicles. Nevertheless, big leaps in defence spending during the year, allocated to arms and equipment, suggest a general lack of long-term defense planning in Montenegro. Even though the Montenegrin budget demonstrates a slightly higher level of transparency than those of most countries in the region (i.e.
it shows individual projects or procurement),it still lacks sufficient transparency and disaggregation.

* Data for 2021 and 2022 are based on the last changes in the 2021 budgets and the initial budget laws for 2022.

2022 – Balkan Defence Monitor
Defence Expeditures – Montenegro

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Croatia-DE-Baner

Defence expenditures – Croatia – 2022

Croatian military expenditure had a sharp increase in 2021, due to the to the contract signed for the purchase of 12 French Dassault Rafale fighter jets at the end of the year. Before that, the expenditure did not experience any large changes, either nominally, or as a military burden. Defence expenditure has taken up around 3.50% of the total governmentexpenditure until 2021.

2021

Share of GDP 1.71%
Share of total government
expenditure 4.30%

The Croatian Parliament regularly adopts the budget for the forthcoming year in late Novemberor early December.
The Parliament also regularly adopts balance sheets and yearly Reports on Defence.

 

The 2021 increase is entirely attributed to the Rafale purchase at the end of the year, which resulted in a rebalance and a 49.7% rise in the planned budget. It should nevertheless be taken into account that the amount can be changed in the final balance sheet for 2021. Prior to that, there were no significant fluctuations during the year, and the initial budget was slightly underspent. Croatia spent the largest portion of its military budget on personnel; however, the above purchasemight change the planned budget structure in favour of arms and equipment.

The Croatian defence budget is the most transparent and disaggregated in the region. Unlike the budgets of other countries, the Croatian budget shows major procurements individually and breaks them down into subcategories.

* Data for 2021 and 2022 are based on the last changes in the 2021 budgets and the initial budget laws for 2022.

2022 – Balkan Defence Monitor
Defence Expeditures –
Croatia

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BiH-Baner

Defence expenditures – Bosnia and Herzegovina – 2022

Military expenditure of Bosnia and Herzegovina has been almost the same in the past five years, both nominally and as the share of GDP.¹

The Parliamentary Assembly has not adopted a federal budget in a timely manner since 2018.
The budget is usually adopted during, or at the end of, the year in to which it pertains. Due to a political crisis, the federal budget for 2021 and 2022 has not been adopted at all. Instead, quarterly decisions on temporary financing are adopted on the basis of the 2020 expenditure. Balance sheets, presenting the actual expenditure, are timely and regularly adopted.

2021

Share of GDP 0.78%

 

Almost 90% of the defence budget in 2021 was spent on personnel due to the political deadlock, which obstructed planning and according allocation of resources. Bosnia and Herzegovina generally spends the largest portion of its defence budget on personnel costs, while the arms and equipment share has not exceeded 4% since 2017.
Budget and balance sheets contain aggregated sums, and sources of funding for rather general categories of expenses. For instance, arms and equipment expenses can be found under the aggregated category Equipment procurement. The documents also include narrative reports with the rationale behind some general categories, i.e. monthly personnel turnover.

* Data for 2021 and 2022 are based on the last changes in the 2021 budgets and the initial budget laws for 2022.

    1.   Due to the complexity of the budget system, it is methodologically challenging to calculate the military expenditure
      of BiH as a share of the total government expenditure, comparable to other countries in the region. Namely, two
      entities have independent budgets that, then, allocate funds upward to the federal budget, which includes the
      defence budget.

2022 – Balkan Defence Monitor
Defence Expeditures –
Bosnia and Herzegovina

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International Military Cooperation – Serbia – 2022

MILITARY EXERCISES

Serbia is specific in the region because it maintains military cooperation both with NATO and Russia. Hence, in 2021, Serbia participated in 14 exercises with NATO members and partners and 4 with Russia. In 2019, there were 5 exercises with Russia and 23 with NATO members.

Besides the pandemic, Serbia’s military cooperation in 2020 was interrupted by the decision to freeze all activities with international partners for 6 months. In order to avoid sending its representatives to an exercise in Belarus amid the controversial presidential elections aftermath in the summer of 2020, but also to preserve good relations with its Russian and Belarus partners, Serbia decided to suspend its activities with all international partners.

DONATIONS

In the past three years, Serbia received substantial donations from Russia and Belarus (30 T-72MS tanks and 30 BRDM-2MS armoured vehicles from Russia, four MIG-29 fighter jets from Belarus). However, their value has not been disclosed to the public. According to an MoD response to BCSP’s request for information of public importance, information about the donations from Russia and Belarus are regarded as foreign classified data, entrusted by another state to be kept confidential.

Top foreign donors (2019-2020)

United States of America (EUR 13,261,918)
China (EUR 755,000)
Republic of Korea (EUR 167,425)

2022 – Balkan Defence Monitor
International Military Cooperation – Serbia

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IMC-head-croatia-2022

International Military Cooperation – Croatia – 2022

MILITARY EXERCISES

Viewed on the annual basis, Croatia participates in the greatest number of exercises in the region; however, predominantly in large multinational ones. The country’s top exercising partner are  the United States of America, with whom Croatia also has bilateral exercises aimed at building  interoperability for special operations. Croatia also participates and hosts a number of regional  exercises, such as those focused on navy operations (usually with Slovenia, Italy, Albania,  Montenegro and Greece), but also within the framework of regional initiatives such as the CEDC,  the B-9 forum or the Adriatic Charter (A5).

DONATIONS

Croatia does not keep a publicly available centralised list of donations. According to information available from the Croatian yearly defence reports and the information disclosed on its MoD website, it can be concluded that the United States of America have been the biggest donor to the Croatian defence system in the past three years.

US donations (2019-2021)

2 helicopters UH-60M „Black Hawk“
6 new Ford 3542 D Cargo trucks (EUR 898,722)
Range Control Tower built by the U.S. Army in Europe
Dimilitarisation of 890 tonnes of surplus ammunition through the ITF fund
Marine pollution centre (EUR 436,489)
Heliport (EUR 1,545,546)

2022 – Balkan Defence Monitor
International Military Cooperation – Croatia

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Strategic Document – BiH – 2022

NATIONAL SECURITY STRATEGY: 2006
NATIONAL DEFENCE STRATEGY: 2008

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National interests and goals (as defined in the Strategies):
Protection and consolidation of National interests and goals (as defined in the Strategies): Establishing and developing security system institutions that will be able to respond to all risks and threats // Accession to international security conventions, European and Euro-Atlantic structures

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Main threats:
Political and social animosities caused by the war and nationalist extremism // Incomplete implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement // Problems related to political transition // Critical regional points, such as Kosovo and Metohija.

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Main principles of national security policy:
Democratic, civilian control of the military and parliamentary oversight // Transparency of defence-related activities, including defence planning and budgeting // Integration into Euro-Atlantic collective security structures

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Regional cooperation:
Bosnia and Herzegovina has no territorial claims involving neighbouring and other states, nor does it perceive neighbouring and other states as hostile and a possible threat to its territorial integrity and sovereignty. Therefore, it is especially important that BiH further develops good neighbourly relations based on the principles of equality and cooperation. Improving good relations and cooperation with neighbours and countries in the wider region, the development of democratic processes in these countries, and the process of their European integration have a positive impact on strengthening the internal security of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

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Regional threats:
South-east remains the most sensitive area of today’s Europe. Efforts toward secession, autonomy and independence of certain ethnic groups are still present in this area, which, together with the relatively high concentration of military capacities, further complicates the overall security situation.

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Relations with NATO:
The key element for achieving the unquestionable collective military security of Bosnia and Herzegovina is to become a member of NATO, as in that case its national sovereignty and territorial integrity would be guaranteed by the Alliance. Membership in the Partnership for Peace is the first step in that direction. Further reform in the field of defence, which will lead to full professionalisation, equipping and training the BiH Armed Forces in accordance with NATO standards, will enable BiH to make a significant contribution to achieving the goals of the Security Policy in the future.

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Relations with the EU:
The commitment to gradual integration into the European Union implies readiness to accept the provisions, legal structure and organisational mechanisms of the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy.

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International military cooperation:
As an active participant in collective security at the global level through membership in the United Nations, the OSCE and the Council of Europe, Bosnia and Herzegovina is engaged in international peace efforts.

2022 – Balkan Defence Monitor
Strategic Documents – Bosnia and Hezgegovina

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Defence expenditures – Albania – 2022

Albanian defence expenditure has experienced a steady increase since 2017, with the exception of 2020, when spending on defence stagnated.

This stagnation can be attributed to the fight against the pandemic. Even though it has not reached the NATO goal of 2% of GDP, the defence expenditure’s share of Albania’s total government expenditure increased from 4.5% in 2017 to almost 9% that was planned for 2022.

2021

Share of GDP 1.38%
Share of total government
expenditure 6.82%

The Albanian defence budget does not tend to change much in the course of a year, staying within the envisaged budget (+- 4%). In fact, it is usually slightly underspent.

The Albanian defence budget is the least transparent and detailed in the region, as it shows only several gene-ral categories: Planning, Management and Administration, Combat Forces, Military Education, Combat Support and Health Support. Hence, the budget structure and the
amounts spent on personnel, or arms and equipment, remain inconclusive from publicly available information. Data provided to NATO show that the gradual rise of Albanian defence expenditure can be attributed to small increases in the arms and equipment spending each year.

* Data for 2021 and 2022 are based on the last changes in the 2021 budgets and the initial budget laws for 2022.

  1. Albanian budget structure graph is designed with the information from the NATO database. Since it could not be derived from the government balance sheets or budgets due to the highly aggregated stucture of the documents, it should not be directly compared with the budget structure of other countries in this report.

2022 – Balkan Defence Monitor
Defence Expenditures – Albania

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