Serbia's navy left high and dry

[Blackleaf]

Serbia's navy left high and dry by the vote for independence
By David Rennie, Europe Correspondent
(Filed: 24/05/2006)



Serbia is about to join the select club of former naval powers.

Officers, who remember the heyday of the old Yugoslav navy - it boasted nearly 80 warships - are weighing their options following Sunday's independence referendum in Serbia's sister republic of Montenegro.

The Yes vote means Serbia will lose its sea ports and naval bases.

Gen Radosav Martinovic, a military adviser to the government of Montenegro, said that the Serbian navy would be lucky to end up with some patrol craft on the Danube.

The general invited Serbia's most capable admirals and officers to stay on and help build a new Montenegrin fleet. The offer may not be that attractive, however, as the new-born nation is planning a coastguard-style force, based on fast patrol boats, plus a three-masted, 180-foot sail training ship, the Jadran.

The Montenegrin authorities have started auctioning off some of the most picturesque bases on the Adriatic to tourist developers.

Other nations, from Ethiopia to the Austro-Hungarian empire, have lost coastlines and waved goodbye to their navies. Bolivia, defying the trend, still maintains a "navy" of river boats and a clutch of admirals, despite losing its coastline to Chile in 1884.

telegraph.co.uk

 

[Finder]

Well we don't know what may happen with some of these bases. Considering Russia kept many of it's bases in the former soviet union the same may happen here. I hate to see a good navy go to waste. I would also say independance may not happen yet as the vote was somewhat close.

Anyhow if they end up losing there ability to have a fleet they may be able to sell it off and in the long run save millions. Also Montenegro may consider allowing the Sebian fleet to run under a joint operation between the two nations if Montenegro get's it serpaertions as well. Considering Montenegro does not have the real resources to run a fleet they would lose the ability to truely patrol there coast lines and protect there rights over the water ways. I think this would be immportant in any trade deals between the two nations.

 

[dekhqonbacha]

Bad news for Serbia. Economically, it's also bad because the cheapest form of transportation is by boats. Serbia will need to pay some tariffs if Montenegro requires it. It's also bad for Serbian navy.

 

[Finder]

Well hopefully they will come up with a solution.

Or Serbia could always sell those 80 ships to nations like.... Iran... Liybia... Or worse...... Jamica....

 

[dekhqonbacha]

by selling them, it will recieve money for the short term, but it will lose it's power.

 

[Finder]

Yes but if they have no deep water ports? um... they are not missing much. of course if they have some sort of defeance union with the Montenegro then that changes things slightly, but if Montenegro doesn't allow some sort of navel usage of there ports, well the only thing to do is to sell your navy or scrap it. Also the Serbian navy isn't that bad to scrap all of it. they have some ok serface ships.

 

[dekhqonbacha]

:lol:

too much honour for serbian navy

 

[Finder]

I'm sure they will figure something out. The current reform government in Serbia would lose a lot of face if they just allowed this to happen. I'm sure some sort of new economic and military union will be formed.

 

[dekhqonbacha]

But Serbia is somehow stubborn. They don't do the requirements for joining to EU. Montenegro will benifit from being with EU instead of Serbia.

 

[Finder]

possibility..