Slovenian Army and Navy division
Emblem of the Slovenian Army
Active	1991-1993 Slovene Territorial Defense Forces
Country	Slovenia
Allegiance	NATO
Branch	Ground Army and Navy
Type	ground army and naval detachment
Role	Defending Slovenian territory
Size	about 9000 personnel
Engagements	Slovenian War of Independence War on Terrorism

Contents 1 Slovenian Army 2 Naval detachment 3 History 4 Current status 5 Weapons and equipment 5.1 Infantry 5.1.1 Small arms 5.1.2 Antitank weapons 5.1.3 Artillery 5.1.4 Tanks and IFVs 5.1.5 Other vehicles 5.2 Naval force 5.3 Former equipment 6 References

[edit] Slovenian Army

Slovenian Army and naval detachment is the primary component of Slovenian Armed forces.

[edit] Naval detachment

The Slovenian navy was built from scratch because Territorial Defense Forces of Slovenia was not equipped with vessels. In 1991 a small diving detachment was formed in Ankaran, it was equipped with sport diving equipment because of Embargo. After the lift of the embargo in 1996 Slovenia bought a single Israeli-built IAI-Ramta Super Dvora Mk2 class patrol boat. In 2008 it was announced that Slovenia will receive a Project 10412 patrol boat. This vessel is special equipped for Slovenian needs.

[edit] History

The current Slovenian Armed Forces are descended from the Territorial Defense of the Republic of Slovenia (Teritorialna Obramba Republike Slovenije; TORS), which was formed in 1968 as a paramilitary complement to the regular army of the former Yugoslav within the territory of Slovenia. The main objectives of TORS were to support the Yugoslav National Army (JNA) and conduct guerrilla operations in the event of an invasion.

When Slovenia declared independence at the onset of the Yugoslav Wars in 1991, the TORS and the Slovenian police comprised the majority of forces engaging the Yugoslav People's Army during the Ten-Day War. The Slovenian Armed Forces were formally established in 1993 as a reorganization of the TORS.

[edit] Current status

A major reorganization of the Slovenian Armed Forces is currently underway, with the goal of changing it from a territorial defense force into a deployable force primarily aimed at peacekeeping. After 1993, the Slovenian Armed Forces had relied on mandatory military service, with conscripts receiving 6–7 months of training. In 2003, the Slovenian Government abolished conscription and as of July 2004, the Slovenian Armed Forces had been almost completely reorganised into a professional army now based on volunteers. Currently there are approximately 7,000 active troops and approximately 5,500 in reserve, reduced from 55,000 personnel during conscription. The Slovenian Army now consists of three brigades, the 1st, 72nd and an Air Defense and Aviation Brigade. In addition to the aviation unit, the Slovenian Army also contains a naval unit, both of which are subordinate to it.

During a press conference on July 18, 2008^[1], the Slovenian defense minister confirmed plans for the acquisition of a Russian Svetlyak class (Project 10412) patrol boat. Displacing 355 (full 395) tons and measuring 49.5 x 9.2 x 2.6 m, the vessel will have a maximum speed of 30 knots and a complement of 24. Armaments include one 30mm AK-630m cannon, two side-mounted 14.5mm machine guns and 16 air-defense missiles. The ship will be built by ALMAZ Shipbuilding^[2] of Saint Petersburg; delivery is expected in 2010. Total cost of the purchase is said to be $39.4 million, two-thirds of which will be covered by existing Russian debt. ^[3]

[edit] Weapons and equipment

[edit] Infantry

[edit] Small arms

• FN F2000 assault rifle (standard)
• H&K G36 assault rifle (limited numbers)
• Beretta M 92 handgun
• Sig Sauer P226 handgun
• H&K MP-5 submachine gun
• FN Minimi Para machine gun
• FN MAG machine gun
• Uzi Machine Pistol
• FN PGM Ultima Ratio Commando I sniper rifle
• FN PGM Mini Hecate sniper rifle
• FN PGM Hecate II sniper rifle
• Zastava M 70AB assault rifle (replaced by FN F2000, reserve status)
• SAR-80 assault rifle

[edit] Antitank weapons

• Spike MR, LR ATGM
• 2300× RGW 90 RPG

[edit] Artillery

• 18× TN90 155 mm towed howitzer
• 36× MN 9 120 mm mortar

[edit] Tanks and IFVs

• 54× M-84 MBT (40 operational)
• 30× M-55 S MBT (in operational reserve)
• 52× M-80A IFV
• 85× Valuk 6x6 IFV
• 135× Patria AMV (Svarun)(Armored Modular Vehicle) 8x8
• 10× Otokar Cobra LAV (light armoured vehicle) 4x4

[edit] Other vehicles

• 29× AM General HMMWV M1114
• 7x JVBT55
• 2x VT55
• 4x MT-55

[edit] Naval force

• 1× IAI-Ramta Super Dvora Mk2 patrol boat
• 1× Project 10412 patrol boat Svetlyak (ordered)

[edit] Former equipment

• 10× 9M111 Fagot ATGM
• 9K11 Maljutka ATGM
• Strela 2M MANPADS
• 6× Strela 1M
• 12× BOV 3
• 12x ZSU-57-2
• 28× BOV M
• 18× M2A1 105 mm towed howitzer
• 30× M48B1 76 mm towed 76 mm towed gun
• 8× 2S1 Gvozdika 122 mm self-propelled howitzer
• 4× M-63 Plamen MLRS
• 12x M53/59 Praga
• 34x T34
• 6x PT 76B (?)
• 4x BRDM2(?)
• 19x M36 Jackson
• 1x T72

[edit] References