Publication

This brief examines the problems facing the government of Serbia and Montenegro in its task to downsize and restructure the country's armed forces. The author discusses both the social implications of retraining and reintegrating redundant personnel, and the challenges of modernizing the army for future tasks in international missions. He finds that the armed forces suffer from old equipment, an aging officers corps, and an uneven division of ranks. The author concludes that, in order to achieve NATO membership through military reform, Serbia and Montenegro's process of military downsizing must be accompanied by a foresighted recruitment policy.