Record number 59056 from the box in which the automatic grenade launcher (BGA) of serial number 201 was placed, discovered in a "civilian" or a member of a paraformation in the village of Banjska in Kosovo, puts the state of Serbia and its defense system (Army, Ministry, Jugoimport SDPR) before a great temptation: how to explain where that weaponry came from and by which routes it came.
If it was removed from a military warehouse and given to "someone", it is a serious problem for the system, which will have to explain it not only to the domestic public, but also to international institutions; and if someone "stole" and sold it on their own, the problem is the responsibility of many in the chain of command - how they did not notice in the annual censuses that such a tool, not a pistol or an automatic rifle, was missing.
minutesRecord number 59056 from the crate in which the automatic grenade launcher was placed.
The check should not take more than a day
One of those who will not remain silent is retired technical service colonel Najdan Vojinović, who was the commander of the rear base in the Pristina Corps at the end of the nineties and knows best the details related to the records of combat assets.
In an interview with "Vreme", he claims that, if desired, it was possible to determine in one day where, from which warehouse or unit, that BGA came from. Both through the factory number and through the records.
The military sector of the Ministry of Defense can quickly determine from which warehouse it was taken. You can't see the stamp well, but they have the names of the technical material handler (storekeeper), the technical service officer and the commander - the head of logistics. This indicates that the BGA was in a military unit, not in a military factory, because they do not have a chief of logistics.
Which military unit is in question can be found in the computers of the personnel service of the Serbian Army and the Ministry of Defense within 15 seconds, by typing the name and surname of the signatories, explains Vojinović.
The pitcher was under-conserved.
He, as someone who spent his working life in logistics, pointed out that the paper found on the box with BGA is not a type document, but a so-called auxiliary document, which is made with the aim of showing on the packaging of assets (box, bag, pallet, sack) what is inside.
"That BGA has its own type case in which it is placed with spare tools and accessories. It was seized from a warehouse of the army, ministries or SDPR and then deconserved. It was not in constant use, but in the warehouse," Vojinović clarifies.
He, as an expert, based on the photo of the minutes (once it was called the "packing list") published by the Kosovo police, pointed out a detail that is imperceptible and irrelevant to the eye of an ordinary observer.
Photo: Zastava Arms "At the top of the record, you can see a yellowish stain, above the inscription 'Box number...'." It is a stain from melted 'solvent' - means for long-term conservation of weapons and equipment. When it is preserved in a bath with 'solvent', at 70 degrees Celsius, and then wrapped in paper, also soaked in that solution, it can be protected for more than 50 years. Not all units in the army have 'Solvent', but only those that have repair shops. And, of course, the Technical Overhaul Institute in Čačak," stated Vojinović, and pointed out that, because of that stain, it is clear that the BGA was deconserved.
A response from the Ministry of Defense is awaited
And that's why, he adds, it's easy to investigate the whole case, if you want - let the technical service of the army and the ministry look at the orders in those units that do long-term conservation of weapons and find the BGA with factory number 201 and see from the work order which unit it came from.
"If the BGA changed the units, in the bill of materials for the handover of assets there are factory numbers, it is easy to find from whom and to whom it was handed over. Military experts, if they want to investigate, can easily find out. Especially since there are signatures of the persons responsible for packing in the type box", concluded Vojinović, who was once the superior of the current head of the Logistics Directorate of the Serbian Armed Forces, Major General Srđan Petković, and who, as a lieutenant, "learned his trade" from him.
It is now up to the state and the Ministry of Defense to make a statement about it, and possibly try to deny Vojinović. Or, according to custom, in front of the public some ensign of the first class before retirement, whose name will not be published, but only initials, will be accused of having "sold" the asset and it will be announced that "proceedings have been initiated" against him.
Read daily news, analysis, commentary and interviews at www.vreme.com
