Minister Stefanović presents decorations to members of Ministry of Defence and Serbian Armed Forces

The designee of the President of the Republic and the Supreme Commander of the Serbian Armed Forces, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence, Nebojša Stefanović, PhD, has presented decorations to members of the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces today. "What everyone in this hall has in common is the brave heart of a soldier that beats for this country - you are the courage and strength of our homeland, its pride, the most valuable thing that Serbia has," said Minister Stefanović, addressing the award winners.



The Minister presented 219 gold and silver medals for merit and zealous service, awarded by the President of the Republic. The ceremony was held at the Guards Club in the presence of the Chief of the Serbian Armed Forces General Staff, General Milan Mojsilović.



- Today I have the honour of presenting medals for merit and zealous service on behalf of the President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, as part of the celebration of our most important military holiday - the Serbian Armed Forces Day. I believe that for every officer, soldier, his family and future generations, getting a decoration from the homeland is an experience that cannot be compared to anything else. It is a special honour and reward for years of hard work and dedicated service leading up to this moment. Today, generals, officers, soldiers, civil servants, men and women are standing together, wearing decorations on their chests awarded to them by the President of the Republic on behalf of Serbia - said Minister Stefanović.



Addressing the gathering, Minister Stefanović said that it would be difficult to describe in just a few sentences what those people had done for their Armed Forces and the Ministry and, above all, for Serbia over the previous years.



- I am convinced that only your families are fully aware of all the sacrifices you have made and all difficult moments you have gone through to deserve this kind of award. Thank you for that. Thank you for your great love for the homeland. We, as the representatives of the state, will try to always show gratitude to our service members. I have no doubt that you will perform your duties professionally and with great dedication, as always, and I am immensely grateful to you as the Minister of Defence and primarily as a citizen of this country. What everyone in this hall has in common is the brave heart of a soldier that beats for this country - you are the courage and strength of our homeland, its pride, the most valuable thing that Serbia has - said Minister Stefanović.



According to him, they are the pride of their ancestors, but they are also the people from whom their own children and all other children in Serbia learn.



- The heroism and courage, dedication and commitment you have shown deserve to go down in history, and your heirs, your children, grandchildren and future generations deserve to be proud of saying your name. I am convinced that the decorations you have received today will act as an incentive for you to keep up the good work, and show other colleagues in our Ministry what it means to fight for one’s homeland. I wish you a happy Serbian Armed Forces Day! Long live Serbia! - said Minister Stefanović.



Six members of the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces were awarded the Gold Medal for Merit, 75 members were awarded the Silver Medal for Merit, 10 members received the Gold Medal for Zealous Service, and 128 members of the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces were awarded the Silver Medal for Zealous Service.



The ceremony at the Guards Club in Topčider was attended by members of the Defence Minister’s and the Chief of the General Staff’s collegiums.