ZAGREB, April 22 (Hina) - The Defence Ministry and the Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia have announced that the number of army troops and employees of the defence sector will have been cut from some 60,000 to 25,000 by
2010.
ZAGREB, April 22 (Hina) - The Defence Ministry and the Armed Forces
of the Republic of Croatia have announced that the number of army
troops and employees of the defence sector will have been cut from
some 60,000 to 25,000 by 2010.#L#
The reduction will be conducted in line with NATO's standards,
material possibilities of the country and Zagreb's stand to base
its defence policy on bids to enter the Alliance.
According to the Defence Ministry, until 2004, 18,000 persons will
be dismissed, and of them, 10,000 will be laid off from the
military.
A spokesman for the Defence Ministry, Lieutenant Zoran Komar, has
said, that at present a ban is in effect on employing new staff in
the ministry or in the armed forces. Thus, the number of the
personnel will be reduced partly in the natural course of events,
i.e. by sending people into retirement.
According to Komar, the Defence Ministry has asked NATO to support
its request which will be sent to the World Bank for granting a loan
to Croatia which should be used as the lay-off pay and compensation
for the loss of office. NATO has supported such requests of Romania
and Bulgaria.
A new defence act will be also important for the re-organisation of
the military. Therefore, the defence ministry has recently drawn up
the new act which is currently being considered by other relevant
ministries in the Ivica Racan Cabinet.
The new law will define rights and responsibilities of citizens in
the military service. The general conscription would not
completely be abolished. There may no longer be the compulsory
military service, but men of military age should be listed in the
military registers. Besides professional staff, men of age up to 27
would be able to volunteer for the army. If they are drafted on the
voluntarily basis, their military service will be registered in
their employment record cards and calculated into their years of
employment.
The voluntarily conscription will be done once in a year after the
Defence Ministry announces 'vacancies'.
All man of military age - both those who volunteer for the army and
those who are only listed in the military files - will have to serve
in the reserves of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia,
Komar added.
Currently, there are between 18-20 thousand conscripts in the
compulsory military service which lasts six months.
(hina) ms