Colonel (retired), Saša Stefanović, was an active member of the Serbian Army and Ministry of Defense from 1987 to December 2021. After graduating from the Military Academy, he spent his entire professional career in the Army’s special forces, holding positions ranging from platoon commander to deputy brigade commander, and for the last ten years he served as Assistant Commander for Planning and Support of the Joint Operational Command of the General Staff of the Serbian Army, and retired as Deputy Director of the Defense Inspectorate of the Ministry of Defense.
During his professional career, he graduated from the highest military schools: the Command and Staff Academy in Belgrade, the General Staff School at the College of International Security Affairs and National War College / National Defense University – Washington (USA), and also received a master’s degree in the field of international counterterrorism, earning the title of expert in international security affairs, and completed Advanced Security Studies at the National Defense School of the University of Defense in Belgrade. During his professional career, he successfully completed a large number of professional and specialist courses in various skills for members of special units and earned instructor titles, including basic and advanced parachute corses, a parachute instructor course, and a test parachutist course. He retired with the title of first-class parachute instructor and a probationary/еxperimental parachutist with over 900 parachute jumps. Of the international staff officer courses, he successfully completed the UN Staff Officer Course – Belgrade, Serbia, UN Staff High Officer Course – Hamburg, Germany, NATO Peace Support Operations Course, Garmispartenkirhen, Germany.
On behalf of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces, he was the main leader of the working team on the development of the Serbian Armed Forces Command Doctrine and the Serbian Armed Forces Operations Doctrine, and he participated in the development of other normative, strategic and doctrinal documents of the Republic of Serbia and the Serbian Armed Forces, including the National Security Strategy and the Defense Strategy of the Republic of Serbia, as well as the Law on Defense, the Law on the Serbian Army and the Law on the Use of the Serbian Armed Forces and Other Defense Forces in Multinational Operations Outside the Borders of the Republic of Serbia. He was the chief planner of the use of Serbian Armed Forces forces in multinational operations in the United Nations missions: UNFICYP – Cyprus, UNIFIL – Lebanon, MINUSCA – Central African Republic and the European Union missions: EUNAVFOR ATALANTA – at sea off the Horn of Africa and in the Western Indian Ocean and EUTM Somalia.
Interest Areas of Research and Professional Focus: anti-terrorism and counter-terrorism; National security and defense; Global security affairs and EU common security defense policy; Special Forces employment; Engagement of Serbian Armed Forces in UN and EU multinational operations.
