Croatia And Serbia Focus On Air Defence

Croatia and Serbia are two Balkan states that will see increased defence budgets in 2018 with a focus on air defence. Croatia, unlike Serbia, is a member of the European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Serbia is taking steps to join the EU, but has no desire at present to join NATO and wishes to remain militarily neutral. It is however a member of NATO’s Partnership for Peace programme and continues to have political dialogue and cooperation with NATO on democratic, institutional, and defence reforms. Serbia’s opposition of Kosovo’s declaration as a sovereign and independent state will continue to influence any alliances and membership.