Reception for Serbian Armed Forces Members who Participated in Mission in Lebanon
Monday, 27.4.2026 | News
Supreme Commander of the Serbian Armed Forces and President of the Republic, Aleksandar Vučić, has hosted a reception today, in the Presidency building, for members of the Serbian Armed Forces who have been involved in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for the past eight months.
The reception was attended by Minister of Defense Bratislav Gašić and Chief of the Serbian Armed Forces General Staff, General Milan Mojsilović.
On that occasion, President Vučić has reminded that the Serbian Armed Forces members participate in the UNIFIL in accordance with the decision of the United Nations, the corresponding resolution of the Security Council and the UN General Assembly.
— Our young men and women were part of Sector “West”, where we participated in the protection of facilities together with Italian units. The conditions are very difficult, especially since the beginning of the declared and undeclared state of war in the Middle East. We are talking about extremely brave women and men, who, in a very dignified way, represented not only the interests of peace, but also our country. When I spoke with Guido Crosetto and whenever I spoke with Giorgia Meloni, with everyone, they would always praise Serbian soldiers, their participation in the UNIFIL mission and they would request and ask for an even larger number of members of the Serbian contingent within the UNIFIL mission - said President Vučić.
He has pointed out that the Republic of Serbia and the Serbian Armed Forces were always ready to contribute to peace within UN missions.
— People should also know that these young men and women have gained enormous experience in extremely demanding, complex, difficult conditions that they will now pass on to their colleagues. They are gathered from different units. Now they are returning to their home units in our country, and they can pass on their knowledge, their experience, everything they have seen, what they have learned, to their younger colleagues, at least the experience they were lacking - said the President of the Republic.
The Supreme Commander has pointed out that participation in such missions requires commitment, work and diligence, and that the Republic of Serbia regularly pays the engaged members of the Serbian Armed Forces, despite the irregular reimbursement of part of the costs by the UN.
— The most important thing is that we have shown with yet another example how international public law is preserved, how the international public legal order is protected and defended and how peace is preserved, how other people’s lives are preserved in an extremely professional and extremely responsible manner — said the President of Serbia, expressing his gratitude to the Serbian Armed Forces members who are preserving peace in the south of Lebanon by providing access to humanitarian aid to the population in conflict zones.
President Vučić has pointed out that the Serbian Armed Forces members who were on the mission are good people with a virtuous heart and they represent a great treasure of the state of Serbia and our armed forces, which must continue to strengthen and modernize and be the guarantor of survival and preservation of our country and peace in it. On that occasion, he thanked and wished happiness to everyone who is in Lebanon.
— We are always worried and make a decision about the possible evacuation or movement of people together with representatives of other countries. They all know that the Serbs are not cowards, and we will behave professionally, responsibly and ensure that we protect the lives of our members, just as they protect the lives of the ordinary population there, which is why they are there to implement the UN decision. Thank you for your courage, effort and hard work, thank you for enduring without your families for a long time and for not even for a moment questioning the reputation of the Serbian soldier, the strength of the Serbian flag, the honor of the name of our country, and that is something we respect very much - stressed the President of Serbia.
At the end of his address, President Vučić has said that he expects accelerated preparations and work on further modernization of the armed forces, especially in the fields of forming battalions, brigades, companies and platoons for unmanned weapons and assets, robots, drones, as well as for the use of artificial intelligence in our armed forces.
Force protection platoon commander, Captain 1st Class Đorđe Kričak, has presented the President of the Republic with a UN blue beret and a souvenir from the mission — framed flags of Serbia and Lebanon and a cedar, as a symbol of that country.
Captain Kričak has pointed out that the force protection platoon, during its engagement in the multinational operation in Lebanon, fully performed all assigned tasks in accordance with UN standard operating procedures.
— For us, this is the greatest honor in our military life and military career. During the execution of the tasks, the platoon members were ambassadors of the Republic of Serbia and represented the Serbian Armed Forces in the best possible way. During our absence from our families, these people gave their best by completing tasks even in the most difficult moments, for which they were praised many times - said Captain Kričak.
