New facility for producing artillery ammunition opened within Cacak-based Sloboda - EUR 5.5 million invested in construction and equipment

Serbian Defense Minister Aleksandar Vucic opened Tuesday (28 May 2013) a newly built facility for producing artillery ammunition in the City of Cacak in central Serbia, saying that the defense industry was the engine of Serbia's industrial progress and that the government would help its development considerably, Tanjug news agency reports.

This means that we will begin investing and creating new jobs, but the state will seek that the money does not go down the drain and that it be re-invested, Vucic said during his visit to the new plant of the company Sloboda in Cacak.

Sloboda Director Zoran Stefanovic informed the guests that the building of the newly opened facility and the equipment, which had been purchased partly in Serbia and partly abroad, cost EUR 5.5 million.

- I believe that we will witness a significant growth in the defense industry, but it will take much more responsibility on our part to see this happen - said Vucic, expressing his satisfaction about U.S. Ambassador to Serbia Michael Kirby accepting the invitation to visit Sloboda.

The U.S. ambassador said that the company could be an example of the high-quality products Serbia had to offer.

Kirby said he was pleased to see that production processes involved the implementation of all relevant international standards, including ISO certification, and that great attention was being paid to environmental protection.

- This is very important for the potential buyers from the West - he added.

Sloboda aparati a.d. Čačak

Ministarstvo odbrane Republike Srbije

Ambasada SAD Beograd

artillery ammunition

Aleksandar Vucic

defense industry

Michael Kirby

Zoran Stefanovic