w-head-bih

Women in Defence System – Bosnia and Herzegovina – 2024

women-icon01
National Action Plan 1325:

The third national action plan of Bosnia and Herzegovina on the Women, Peace and Security Agenda expired in 2022 and new is not yet developed. However, the new Gender Action plan of Bosnia and Herzegovina 2023-2027 includes a chapter on Gender and Security, which states the goals to be achieved in the area by 2027. In addition, the key topics of the third local action plan on 1325 are mainstreamed in other strategic documents dealing with migration and asylum seeking, prevention of terrorism and control of small arms and light weapons.

women-icon02
Participation of women in the MoDs and the Armed Forces:

Compared to the previous research, the total number of professional military personnel and civil servants shows an increase in the representation of women by one percent, but women stagnate in the ranks of officers, non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnel. According to data from the Ministry of Defence of BiH, the Armed Forces had about 8734, soldiers and 791 civilian employees in 2023. Among them, there are 758 women as uniformed personnel or 9 percent of the total number, while 107 women or 45 percent work as civilians. Women make up a quarter of the civilian employees of the Ministry of Defence. In the Armed Forces, about 143 women, or 8 percent of the total number, are officers in the ranks of brigadier, colonel, major, captain, lieutenant, and second lieutenant. A positive development is that in 2023, the Armed Forces received their first female pilot, Draženka Panić. Furthermore, there are 148 female non-commissioned officers, or about 6 percent of their total number. These are the ranks of sergeant, senior sergeant, sergeant first class, staff sergeant and chief sergeant. Finally, around 12 percent constitute female enlisted personnel.

According to the media reports, about 270 women in the Armed Forces identify themselves as Bosniaks regardless of their religion. Until recently, wearing hijab in the military was not allowed by the rules of service. The policy changed after Emela Mujanović, one of the hijab-wearing soldiers, sued the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina for discrimination. To solve the problem, Defence Minister Zukan Helez recently proposed changes to allow the wearing of headscarves of the same material and colour as the uniform.

 
women-icon03
Representation of women in command and leadership positions:

There are 69 women appointed to leadership positions in the Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces. The highest rank held by women in the Armed Forces of BiH is still that of Colonel. Nevertheless, two women and 36 men, who hold the rank of brigadier, are awaiting appointments to the rank of general.

women-icon04
Participation of women in peacekeeping operations:

After an institutional deadlock in decision-making, the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina made a decision in 2023 to deploy two members of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the UN in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) and three members of the Armed Forces to the European Union (EU) Training Mission in the Central African Republic (EUTMRCA).

      1.  Gender action plan of Bosnia and Herzegovina for the period 2023-2027, February 2023, https://arsbih.gov.ba/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GAP-BiH-2023-2027-Bosanski-jezik-1.pdf 
      2.  Radio Slobodna Evropa, „U Oružanim snaga BiH sve više žena, nijedna sa činom generala,“ [There are more and more women in the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina, none with the rank of general], 16 May 2023, https://www.slobodnaevropa.org/a/bosna-hercegovina-zene-vojska/32413772.html
      3. Hercegovina info, „JEDINA ŽENA PILOT U ORUŽANIM SNAGAMA BiH Draženka je savladala sve prepreke i sada ruši tabue,“ [THE ONLY WOMAN PILOT IN THE ARMED FORCES OF BIH Draženka has overcome all obstacles and is now breaking taboos], 10 December 2023, https://www.hercegovina.info/vijesti/bih/jedina-zena-pilot-u-oruzanim-snagama-bih-drazenka-je-savladala-sve-prepreke-i-sada-rusi-tabue/219633/
      4. Radio Slobodna Evropa, „Uposlenice sa hidžabom ‘problem’ za pravosuđe BiH,“ [Female employees with hijab a ‘problem’ for the judiciary of Bosnia and Herzegovina], 29 August 2023, https://www.slobodnaevropa.org/a/bih-sudovi-pravosudje-hidzab/32569534.html
      5. Ibid.
      6. Preporod info, „OSBiH angažirane u dvije mirovne misije: BH. put od konzumenta do aktera kolektivne sigurnosti,“ [Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina engaged in two peacekeeping missions: BH. the path from the consumer
        to the actor of collective security], 25 December 2023, https://preporod.info/bs/article/48457/osbih-angazirane-u-dvije-mirovne-misije-bh-put-od-konzumenta-do-aktera-kolektivne-sigurnosti

2024 – Balkan Defence Monitor
Women In Defence System – Bosnia and Herzegovina

DOWNLOAD PDF
w-head-alb

Women in Defence System – Albania – 2024

women-icon01
National Action Plan 1325:

In 2018, Albania adopted its first two-year action plan on women, peace and security. The date of adoption of the Albanian government’s second plan remain unclear. However, the Ministry of Defence officially said that it has submitted its findings to the Ministry of Health and Social Protection responsible for compiling a comprehensive summary report on the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security in Albania.

women-icon02
Participation of women in the MoDs and the Armed Forces:

Albania has achieved the NATO standard of 15% of female uniformed personnel in the army. However, Albania is the only country in the region with the quota for women in the army (15%) that can affect their further admission. In 2023, Albania had the highest percentage of women officers and non-commissioned officers in the Western Balkans, comprising 21% of officers and 13.5% of NCOs. Still, the percentage of female enlisted personnel (11%) remains lower than other countries in the region. The MoD has a civil employee representation rate of 37% women.

women-icon03
Representation of women in command and leadership positions:

The current representation of women in leadership positions is approximately 10%, which equates to 44 women. Manushaqe Shehu, the first female Deputy Chief of General Staff, holds the highest rank of Major General in the Albanian Armed Forces since 2018. In addition, Albania had two women as its defence ministers until 2020.

women-icon04
Participation of women in peacekeeping operations:

The percentage of women participating in missions abroad remains at 5%.

2024 – Balkan Defence Monitor
Women In Defence System – Albania

DOWNLOAD PDF
imc-head-ser

International Military Cooperation – Serbia – 2024

MILITARY EXERCISES

In 2023, the participation of the Serbian Armed Forces in international exercises, either bilateral or multilateral, was shaped by the Serbian Government’s decision from late February 2022 to abort all activities related to planning, preparing and conducting the exercises with foreign partners. This decision was made in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. However, in 2023, the Serbian Government exempted “the Platinum Wolf 2023”, a military exercise co-organised by the United States European Command and Serbian Armed Forces and hosted by Serbia, from the 2022 decision, making it the only international military exercise in which Serbian Armed Forces participated in 2023.

DONATIONS

In 2023, Serbia signed four international agreements on donations, one with China and three with the US. It has not been specified whether these agreements have been implemented, but the data on their monetary value were disclosed in the response by the Serbian MoD. A major change compared to the previous years, when the US dominated as the military donor, is that this year’s donation from China exceeds all the US donations aggregate. In March 2023, Serbia and China signed an agreement on free military aid to Serbia valued at 50 million Chinese yuan or EUR 6.700.000. No other data on this donation were available, including its exact content of equipment and when the donation was implemented.

Within the Global Initiative for Peace Operations Fund, the US signed an agreement to donate USD 155.832 to the Serbian military to cover the warehousing and transportation expenses for assembly facilities. A protocol was signed for the US to donate military tents, “Shelter Base X307 16×35”, worth USD 75.232 to the Serbian Armed Forces. The US also signed an agreement to donate IT equipment worth USD 21.742,88 to the Serbian military.

TOP FOREIGN DONORS 2023

China
EUR 6.7 million

United States of America
USD 252.806,88

2024 – Balkan Defence Monitor
International Military Cooperation – Serbia

DOWNLOAD PDF
imc-head-mak

International Military Cooperation – North Macedonia – 2024

MILITARY EXERCISES

In 2023, North Macedonia participated in 31 international military exercises. Among these exercises, 13 were bilateral and 18 were multilateral. Regarding bilateral military exercises, five were conducted with the US, four with Turkey, two with Greece and one with the UK and France, respectively. 

NATO and its Partnership for Peace (PfP) programme absolutely dominate when it comes to multilateral international military exercises in which North Macedonia participated. Nine of these exercises were done under the auspices of NATO, among which there were two cyber security exercises, including “Cyber Unity 23” and “Cyber Coalition 23”. Five exercises were led by the US to prepare the US army and the ally armies to operate under NATO standards. Three exercises were regional in scope, like the “Laufer 23” implemented within the Adriatic Charter (A-5), “Strong Balkan 23 (B-9)”; a regional exercise intended to boost interoperability with NATO, and exercise “Maple Arch 23” held under the auspice South-Eastern Europe Brigade (SEEBRIG) to bring the participating countries closer to NATO standards. The North Macedonian Army also participated in “Triglav Star 23” with Slovenia, UK, and Colorado Army National Guard participation.

DONATIONS

The North Macedonian MoD could not provide an absolute value of all the donations in 2023, but the approximate value was provided. It was impossible to extrapolate the exact timeframe of these donations based on the MoD’s response and the open sources. However, based on the provided data, the US military donations are valued at approximately USD 3.718.792, followed by the UK, whose donations were approximately GBP 100.000. It was not possible to identify the exact content of the UK donations. Still, the US donations mostly involved the donation of spare parts, including for armoured vehicles and measurement instruments. Lithuania also donated spare parts to North Macedonia, although it was not possible to identify the monetary value. However, the largest military donation to North Macedonia was from the EU, as the European Peace Facility (EPF) provided assistance worth EUR 9 million intended for the equipment of the light infantry battalion group to enhance the ability to participate in EU military missions under the auspices of EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy.

TOP FOREIGN DONORS 2023

EU – the European Peace Facility (EPF)
USD 9 million

2024 – Balkan Defence Monitor
International Military Cooperation – North Macedonia

DOWNLOAD PDF
imc-head-cg

International Military Cooperation – Montenegro – 2024

MILITARY EXERCISES

Based on the response from the MoD and from open-source research, it is estimated that Montenegro participated in 25 military exercises in 2023, and 23 of these exercises were multilateral. When it comes to multilateral exercises, 17 were NATO exercises, one was a multilateral US-led exercise, and one was a Greece-led exercise. Within the NATO exercise, the one that sticks out was “Common Challenge 23”, hosted by Montenegro, which focused on elite mountain warfare. Four exercises were under the auspices of regional initiatives, one with the Adriatic Charter (A-5), two with the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative (ADRION) and the regional special forces exercise “Strong Balkan 23 (B-9)”;

DONATIONS

There is limited information on international military donations to Montenegro in 2023. Turkey appears to be the greatest military donor in 2023, having donated three logistic vehicles worth USD 1.2 million. Slovenia donated seven mountain guns and 112 salvos for the Honorary Guard, but there is no estimate of the monetary value of this donation.

TOP FOREIGN DONORS 2023

Turkey
USD 1.2 million

2024 – Balkan Defence Monitor
International Military Cooperation – Montenegro

DOWNLOAD PDF
imc-head-cro

International Military Cooperation – Croatia – 2024

MILITARY EXERCISES

While the Croatian MoD does not respond to FOI requests, the open-source search led to the compilation of data through the Croatian MoD’s website and relied on the plan of military exercises that the Croatian government adopted in early 2023. Based on these two sources of data, it was established that Croatia had 66 military exercises in 2023. Most of these were multilateral exercises, totalling 57 of which 47 were with NATO or multilateral exercises led by major NATO powers to boost interoperability with NATO and the application of NATO standards. Two exercises were held with the EU. There were also eight regional exercises done under the auspices of various regional initiatives, including three with the Regional Multinational Division Centre, one with the Adriatic Charter (A-5), two with the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative (ADRION), one with the Defence Cooperation Initiative (DECI) and one with the Central European Defence Cooperation. Bilaterally, there were nine international military exercises, including the US (5 exercises), France (2 exercises), the UK (1 exercise) and Italy (1 exercise). These exercises were diverse in scope and nature as the individual exercises involved regular troops, special forces, the navy, air force, military police, cyber defence and computer-assisted exercises, among others.

DONATIONS

Just like in 2021 and 2022, the US again became Croatia’s largest military donor. The combined value of donations and grants from the US to Croatia is USD 202.1 million. These involve an agreement with the US on a foreign military assistance programme worth USD 140 million (EUR 152 million). The acquisition of 89 infantry fighting vehicles, Bradley from the US, involves Croatia providing USD 145,2 million and the US providing USD 57 million. Croatian special forces also received three Rigid Inflatable Boats (RIBs) from the US worth USD 5.1 million. The UK donated IT equipment of unspecified monetary value.

TOP FOREIGN DONORS 2023

United States of America
USD 202.1 million

2024 – Balkan Defence Monitor
International Military Cooperation – Croatia

DOWNLOAD PDF
imc-head-bih

International Military Cooperation – Bosnia and Herzegovina – 2024

MILITARY EXERCISES

Based on the response from the MoD of Bosnia and Herzegovina, it was estimated that there were 14 military exercises. Nine of the 14 exercises were multilateral, with four conducted with NATO and three US-led multilateral exercises. Two of these multilateral exercises were regional, with one being the “Strong Balkan 23 (B-9),” and the second one was the one in which the military medical team took part in an exercise organised by the Balkan Medical Task Force (BMTF). There were five military exercises in 2023. Two were done with Turkey, with Bosnia and Herzegovina being an observer in the “Anatolian Phoenix 2023” exercise. While the regional initiative Adriatic Charter (A-5) held an exercise called “Laufer 23”, Bosnia and Herzegovina participated in it on a bilateral basis with Croatia. One bilateral exercise was held with Italy. Bosnia and Herzegovina also took part in an exercise, “Adriatic Strike 2023”, gathering NATO members and NATO partner countries. The MoD of Bosnia and Herzegovina classified this exercise as a bilateral exercise, but it was impossible to determine the partner country for this exercise.

DONATIONS

The response from the MoD did not include information on foreign military donations. Based on an open-source search, it is estimated that the EU was the largest donor to the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the total value being EUR 26 million. Under the European Peace Facility (EPF), the EU pledged an Assistance Measure to Bosnia and Herzegovina worth EUR 10 million for demining efforts. In addition, the EU approved further EUR 10 million for field equipment, military engineering tools and CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear) material for the Tactical Support Brigade. The donations also involved the EUR 6 million Assistance Measure under the EPF for the Balkan Medical Task Force. Germany donated EUR 410.000, with EUR 350.000 being the value of IT equipment for the Training Centre for Peace Support Operations (PSOTC) and the EUR 60.000 support for the demining battalion.

2024 – Balkan Defence Monitor
International Military Cooperation – BiH

DOWNLOAD PDF
imc-head-alb

International Military Cooperation – Albania – 2024

MILITARY EXERCISES

Based on open-source data, Albania is estimated to have participated in 20 military events in 2023.
There were 17 multilateral exercises. Most of these exercises were with NATO, ten total. There were three US-led multilateral exercises. There were four regional multilateral exercises: one with the Adriatic Charter (A-5) and two with the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative (ADRION). The most important of these regional exercises was the special operation forces’ exercise hosted by Albania, “Strong Balkan 23 (B-9)”; an exercise
intended to boost interoperability with NATO. In total, Albania participated in three bilateral military drills in 2023. Two bilateral military drills were conducted with the US and one with the New Jersey Army National Guard. One bilateral military drill was done with Turkey.

DONATIONS

As the Albanian MoD refused to respond to the request for access to information, open-source research was conducted. Based on open sources, the US was the largest military donor to Albania in 2023 with USD 9.74 million.

TOP FOREIGN DONORS 2022

United States of America
USD 9.74 million

2024 – Balkan Defence Monitor
International Military Cooperation – Albania

DOWNLOAD PDF
de-head-mak

Defence expenditure – North Macedonia – 2024

Defence budget of North Macedonia has experienced a substantial increase since the country joined NATO in 2020. The increase is also a consequence of a long-term plan of modernisation of the Army. Despite the budget being underspent in the last two years, the 2024 budget comes with a 38% increase compared to the previous year. Defence expenditure as a share of GDP also increased from 1% in 2019 to over 2% planned in 2024.

2023

Share of GDP 1,67%
Share of total government
expenditure 4,52%

Budget laws for the upcoming year are regularly adopted by the Parliament of North Macedonia in late December. Balance sheets are usually adopted regularly as well. The Ministry of Defence publishes quartal budget realisation reports on its website.

Until 2021, the largest percentage of the budget was spent on personnel. Following modernisation projects and equipment procurement, such as Stryker and Oshkosh armed vehicles, the share of arms and equipment budget started to slowly increase. By the 2023 budget, North Macedonia planned to spend 39% on this category, however it actually spent 11% less, or 28% of defence expenditure. In 2024 arms and equipment spending is expected to surpass personnel expenditure.

The large portion of other expenses accounts for goods and services excluding capital expenditure, and transfers to pension fund and local municipalities. The defence budget of North Macedonia is divided into programmes and its transparency and disaggregation could be improved.

2024 – Balkan Defence Monitor 
Defence Expenditures – North Macedonia

DOWNLOAD PDF
de-head-cg

Defence expenditure – Montenegro – 2024

Defence budget of Montenegro has undergone fluctuations in the past years, both in terms of absolute increase and budget structure.

This is partly a consequence of the country joining NATO and modernizing the Army to meet the NATO standards, but also due to political crisis and changes of governments. Data for 2023 suggests a stabilization of defence expenditure compared to initial budget.

2023

Share of GDP 1,08%
Share of total government
expenditure 2,63%

Budgets for the upcoming year are usually adopted by the Parliament in November or December, albeit the 2021 Budget was adopted with a six-month delay. Balance sheets submitted by the Government have never been adopted by the Parliament, with the 2021 Balance sheet failing to pass the competent parliamentary Board and 2022 Balance sheet still being in procedure.

With the exception of 2018 and 2019, more than half of defence expenditure goes on personnel. Larger percentage of spending on arms and equipment in those two years is due to procurement of Bell helicopters and Oshkosh JLTV armoured vehicles. Except for 2023, expenditure structure greatly differs from initial budget structure – in 2022, 7.6 percent was planned for arms and equipment, but the balance sheet shows almost 24 percent of budget being spent. This gap was even larger in 2021. Upcoming procurements include 120mm vehicle-mounted mortar system from Israel worth 20 million USD. Montenegrin budget is among the most transparent in the region and has improved in 2023 by including NATO, EU and UN missions as specific budget activities. Transparency and disaggregation could be further improved, including by referring to specific procurements.

2024 – Balkan Defence Monitor 
Defence Expenditures – Montenegro

DOWNLOAD PDF