Bosnia and Herzegovina still has a substantial amount of surplus military ammunition. A large part of this is poorly maintained and is often unstable. This is a serious public safety concern for those living in the vicinity of storage sites, but also a considerable security risk as such.
The military unit "Tehnicka Radionica za Odrzavanje Municije" (TROM) in Doboj has as one of its main tasks the destruction of surplus ammunition and is doing an important job in meeting these challenges. However, with small means it is possible to make the unit's operation even more efficient. The Norwegian Embassy has therefore at the request of Minister of Defence, Dr. Selmo Cikotic, decided to fund the acquisition of equipment that will increase TROM's capacity for ammunition destruction by some 40%.
The equipment consists of two forklift trucks for moving ammunition around the facility, equipment which will automate much of the destruction process and a video surveillance system that will improve the security at the facility. The video surveillance system will also free more manpower for work on actual destruction, since the need for guard duty personnell will decrease. TROM has already taken delivery of the two forklift trucks and the video surveillance system and is awaiting delivery of the destruction equipment in the beginning of 2010.
The project is part of the Norwegian embassy's effort to support Bosnia and Herzegovina's Nato integration process. Being the Nato Contact Point Embassy in BiH, this is a priority for the embassy. The Nato advisory team has furthermore been deeply involved in forming and implementing the project. The Nato liaison in Banja Luka, LtCol Ivar Haave (NOR), is coordinating and following up the project on a day-to-day basis.
On the 4. of November there was a press event in connection with the donation at TROM in Doboj. The Norwegian ambassador, Jan Braathu, was present together with Deputy Commander of Nato HQ Sarajevo, General John W. Bullard Jr. as well as other dignitaries.
The Ministry of Defence of Bosnia and Herzegovina has also published an article in connection with the donation. The article can be found
here (page in B/C/S).