01.02.2009.
Public discussion on the Strategy of National Security
ABOUT THE DOCUMENTS
The Strategy of National Security represents a comprehensive program position the realization of which protects the top national values and interests in different areas of the social life of citizens and the state. It, basically, represents an all encompassing document which formulates the security objectives in the area of foreign policy, economy, defence, internal security, education, science, culture and other areas of social life thus defining the basics of national security.
The Strategy of National Security is an all-encompassing document, which transparently presents to the foreign and domestic audience all strategic positions of our country with respect to the creation of national security and with respect to regional and international participation in creating a more favourable security situation.In June 2006, the Government of Serbia formed a Work Group on making the Draft of the National Security Strategy. The representatives of different ministries such as the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Foreign, and the representatives of the President’s Cabinet as well as of the intelligence agencies participated in the work. After the harmonization at the ministries’ level, the text of the National Security Strategy was adopted in October 2006 and was submitted for further review to the Government.
The parliamentary elections in January 2007 stalled the process of adoption of the strategy.
After the Government was formed in May, the Minister of Defense submitted an initiative to the Government in August 2007, to form a new team, which would make a new draft and would redefine the existing one harmonizing it with the changes in the security political situation in the country. Bearing in mind that the Strategy represents a Document of great importance for the public in general ad that the starting document for making strategic doctrinaire documents in the area of security and defense, the Ministry started making a new draft, based on the existing text. The draft of the document was adopted at the Defense Minister’s staff meeting on 26 October 2007 and was passed on to the Government for adoption.By adopting the Act on Defense in late 2007, all normative conditions for making and adopting the Strategy of National Security were created. The law defines that the Ministry of Defense is tasked with making the draft which is then adopted by the National Assembly.
The illegal act of unilateral declaration of Kosovo’s independence in February 2008, and the fact that several countries have recognized this act, resulted in amending the draft.
Furthermore, after the election of new Government in July 2008, the amendment process in accordance with the defined internal and foreign policy of the Government, was finalized. The current political situation in the country, the region and the world, along with the secession of the South Ossetia and Abkhazia from Georgia, the world economic crisis s well as the adoption of Republic of Serbia’s initiative to the UN General Assembly that the ICTY declares itself with respect to Kosovo’s declaration of independence all caused that the document be reviewed and amended.
The Initial text was the text of the Strategy of Defense of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, as was the case with the comparative analysis of the contents of defense strategies and the systems of defense of neighbouring and other countries in the region. After the making of the Draft in October 2006 and adopting the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia the same year, the Draft of the National Security Strategy of Serbia was adopted. Further amendments to the text went concurrently with the amendments to the Draft itself.
PUBLIC DISCUSSION
The public discussion on the Draft of the National Security was held in the period from 15 December 2008 to 31 January 2009.The participants of the public discussion gave very positive reviews of the discussion given the structure and the contents of the Draft of the National Security Strategy. The main position of the participants was that adopting these documents was a chance for for the most important political subjects to give their opinion of the strategic issues of the Republic of Serbia’s security policy, such as the relations with the NATO, and the role of the National Security Council.
