The Croatian Army is preparing to set up a modern training centre for educating non-commissioned officers, which will be the key to upgrading its operational capabilities, Defence Minister Damir Krsticevic said on Monday.

The towns of Udbina, Slunj, and Djakovo are being considered as potential locations for the new training centre, which will be named after the 1991-95 war veteran Marko Babic, known for destroyed the most enemy tanks during the siege of Vukovar.

“We have had one such centre at Sepurine, which contributed to the army’s efficiency during the last military operations of the 1991-95 war. Based on that tradition and analysis, we have concluded that what we need is a modern training centre of such nature, a modern-day Sepurine, Krsticevic told reporters.

Sepurine is a village near the city of Zadar in central Dalmatia. A commando training centre opened there in 1994, which trained some 1,000 soldiers until 1995, and who took part in the fighting in the closing stages of the war. The centre was later closed in 2000, with the site now expected to be re-developed by the local tourist industry, Vecernji List daily reported on Monday.

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