Civil-military relations in Serbia-Montenegro: an army in search of a state

Abstract:

Since 2000, Serbia-Montenegro has faced a threefold challenge in reforming its civil-military relations: First, establishing the principle of civilian control over the armed forces and democratising the nature of this control; Second implementing a comprehensive programme of military modernisation and organisation reform; Finally, managing an evolving and sometimes troubled relationship with the West - particularly over the issue of war crimes. This paper argues that while progress has been made in all three of these areas, reform remains hampered both by the persistent legacies of the Milosevic period and the continuing failure to resolve the question of legitimate statehood in the wake of the collapse of Yugoslavia. This wider context has helped to push military reform to the back of the political agenda and left the process in the hands of the armed forces themselves.