The Minister of Defense of Bosnia and Herzegovina Zukan Helez, together with the Chief of the Joint Staff of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Colonel General Senad Mašović, and the Commander of the NATO Headquarters in Sarajevo, Brigadier General Pamela McGaha, today opened a modernized armory in the Main Logistics Base of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Butile, according to which other facilities for the storage of small arms of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The event was also attended by EUFOR Commander Major General Helmut Habermayer, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of BiH Major General Gojko Knežević, Commander of the Operational Command of the Armed Forces of BiH Major General Radovan Ilić, Commander of the Support Command of the Armed Forces of BiH Major General Marko Stojčić, Commander of the Logistics Command of the Armed Forces of BiH Brigadier Ernes Heleg and other dignitaries.
The armory in the Barracks of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina “Butila”, where small arms and related ammunition are kept, has been modernized according to high international security standards of protection level RC-3. It is a pilot project, which will serve as an exemplary model according to which, with the support of the NATO Trust Fund, the remaining rooms for the storage of weapons and ammunition will be modernized at promising locations of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Ministry of BiH allocated about 52,000 BAM for the pilot project of modernization of the armory in Butile, and the works were completed ahead of schedule.
“BiH, with its military capacities and limited resources, strives to integrate its defense potential into the global system of collective security. By implementing this project, the Armed Forces of BiH accept NATO and international standards for the storage of weapons and ammunition, which also proves our commitment to cooperation with NATO.” , Minister Helez said on that occasion.
In his speech, General Mašović noted that increasing the level of security in military facilities contributes to preventing the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, thereby increasing the level of security in the entire territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
General McGaha stressed that NATO will help modernize and additionally equip around 40 rooms for the storage of small arms, which NATO helps preserve the safety of all citizens of this country, the Office of Public Relations of the Ministry of Defense of Bosnia and Herzegovina announced.
