Nikolic: Battle of Kolubara victory - military marvel

LAZAREVAC - The 100th anniversary of the Battle of Kolubara, the most important of the battles between the army of the Kingdom of Serbia and the Austro-Hungarian Empire in World War I, was marked with full state and military honors at the memorial complex at the Church of St. Demetrius in Lazarevac, near Belgrade, on Sunday.

A liturgy for the victims was offered by Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch Irinej, and the ceremony was attended by Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic, who was the first to lay a laurel wreath at the memorial ossuary in the church and pay his respect to the heroes of the Battle of Kolubara.

Also laying wreaths and flowers and paying their respects to the fallen Serbs were Chief of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces, General Ljubisa Dikovic, Defense Minister Bratislav Gasic and Labor Minister Aleksandar Vulin, descendants of Duke Zivojin Misic, who was in command of the Serbian army in the Battle of Kolubara, representatives of the diplomatic corps and representatives of the association of veterans fostering the tradition of Serbia's liberation wars.

It is impossible to talk about the first year of the Great War, which engulfed the whole world one hundred years ago, without mentioning two victories by the Serbian army which decisively helped embolden the Allies on the way to the final Allied victory, President Nikolic said during the commemoration.

"The Battle of Kolubara was hailed as marvel by both conquerors and allies, and perhaps even by the Serbs themselves," Nikolic said, stressing that the battle was being studied at military academies throughout the world as an example of military skills, courage of generals, and tactics and strategy.

"You cannot defeat the Serbs unless...