BELGRADE - NATO’s Deputy Assistant Secretary General James Appathurai, NSPA’s Deputy Director of Logistics Orhan Muratli, and Chief of NATO MLO Belgrade Brigadier General Cesare Marinelli participated in the opening ceremony for the new Trust Fund project for the TRZ Kragujevac demilitarisation facility in central Serbia together with Minister of Defence of Serbia Zoran Djordjevic, NATO members’ ambassadors, and other dignitaries.
The Serbia IV Trust Fund will be used to enhance the Technical Overhaul Facility in Kragujevac in its destruction of almost 2,000 tons of surplus ammunition. The project is led by the United Kingdom, and executed by the NATO Support and Procurement Agency with the total budget of €3.7 million.
"The work that is done through this facility, including the Trust Fund, is very important, because the safe maintenance of ammunitions is something that affects the entire society. I am happy to be part of something that shows what NATO and Serbia are doing concretely together," said Deputy Assistant Secretary General Appaturai.
The Trust Fund was initiated in 2013 following a request for assistance from Serbia to NATO and will fund up to €2.4 million of industrial demilitarisation over a 24 month period.
"The implementation of this project will contribute to raising the capacity of the Technical Overhaul Facility, which will further influence the positioning of the Facility as a center for the disassembly of ammunition in the region. I am convinced that Serbia, together with its partners on the project, will successfully execute this important task," Minister Djordjevic said.
The facility in Kragujevac has a knowledgeable and capable workforce with sound experience of ammunition disposal but requires assistance to further develop its capacity. While increasing the security and safety of the storage, the project would allow for more effective management of resources and employ environmentally responsible techniques.