If there is no army, there is no state, says Serbian president

By Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) – Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Sunday that if there is no army, there will be no state, and that "they will eat us overnight."

''We have money… the only question is whether we have people. Today, we are a superpower in terms of tanks. We have a lot of tanks, but the problem is that we don’t have enough people. The south of Serbia cannot defend the entire country,'' Vucic made these remarks on the eve of Christmas for Orthodox Christians during a local television channel program.

Earlier on Friday, the Serbian government announced a plan to reinstate mandatory military service for young people in the country.

In 2011, the Serbian government decided to suspend mandatory military service, which was for young men only.

"It is difficult for us to bring anything new to Serbia because no one will allow a militarily neutral country to gain power as quickly as we do. We are in the process of purchasing 12 new modern pieces of equipment," Vucic said.

He added that the Serbian army is now three times stronger than in previous years.