"It's our obligation to safeguard the memory of our soldiers": 21 years since Battle of Pastrik

On Tuesday, the minister of defense, Aleksandar Vulin, laid a wreath at the Memorial Fountain dedicated to the victims of the wars from 1990 to 1999 in Leskovac, on the occasion of the marking the 21st anniversary of the Battle of Pastrik.

Wreaths were also laid by the Minister of Defense Aleksandar Vulin, members of the wartime command of the 549th Motorized Brigade, participants in the battle, and Mayor of Leskovac Goran Cvetanovic.

After the ceremony, Minister Vulin recalled that 21 years ago, the Yugoslav Army (VJ) and its heroic 549th Brigade stopped and pushed back the NATO aggressor, while not allowing it to enter our territory by land.

"21 years ago, a criminal NATO aggression took place, for which no one has been held responsible and regarding which, as it seems, the world pretends no one should be held responsible. For 21 years, Serbia has not stopped remembering, while the whole world has been trying to pretend that the NATO aggression never took place, as if there were no crimes, as if there was no sovereign country, as if Serbian territory had not been torn apart. 21 years ago, the 549th Brigade showed why it was heroic and why it is a part of a heroic nation, and 21 years later, we must not allow it to be forgotten," Minister Vulin stressed.

If we forget, the minister of defense added, and if Serbia stops seeking justice and stops remembering - it will happen again, maybe to some other, small and free nation.

"As surrender was no option for the 549th Brigade, for  our people, for all of us, 21 years ago - so forgetting is not an option today," concluded Minister Vulin.

General (retired) Bozidar Delic, the war commander of the 549th Motorized Brigade, pointed out that combat operations on Mt. Pastrik were the most difficult battles fought during the 1999 NATO aggression.

Speaking about the significance of the Battle of Pastrik and the memory of its heroes, participants in that battle, General (retired) Stojan Konjikovac said that the fighters should be respected in order to set an example to the younger generations.

"We are witnesses that these battles, at Kosare and Pastrik, were not spoken about for a long time. In recent years, they have been talked about, films are being made, monuments are being erected. We should continue with that practice and respect everyone, especially those fighters who have faced health and financial problems," Konjikovac pointed out.

He said that the greatest heroes were young soldiers, reservists, volunteers who, he added, bore the burden of these battles.

The mayor of Leskovac said that a monument dedicated to the fallen soldiers in the conflicts and during the NATO aggression, from 1990 to 1999, is an eternal reminder of their courage, commitment, but also love of the country.

"It is our obligation to preserve the memory of them, their sacrifice and the sacrifice of their loved ones. We have erected a monument in order to at least slightly pay back our eternal debt to them, to be brave in front of history, our ancestors and future generations," said Cvetanovic.

The Yugoslav Army defended the territory of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SRJ, Serbia and Montenegro) on Mt. Pastrik against a ground offensive that the KLA ("Kosovo Liberation Army") terrorists tried to carry out from the direction of Albania towards Kosovo and Metohija, together with the Albanian Army, helped by intensive aerial bombardment carried out by NATO.

26 members of the Yugoslav Army were killed during the fighting on Mt. Pastrik.

The 549th Motorized Brigade was awarded the Order of the People's Hero for exceptional results in opposing the aggressor and for showing impeccable wartime heroism.

(Telegraf.rs)