The Gašinci military training grounds is a

Croatian Army The Croatian Army ( hr, Hrvatska kopnena vojska or HKoV) is the largest and most significant component of the Croatian Armed Forces (CAF). Role and deployment The fundamental role and purpose of the Croatian Army is to protect vital national i ...

training base located 10 kilometers from

Đakovo Đakovo (; hu, Diakovár) is a town in the region of Slavonia, Croatia. Đakovo is the centre of the fertile and rich Đakovo region ( hr, Đakovština ). Etymology The etymology of the name is the gr, διάκος (diákos) in Slavic form đ ...

, in the region of

Slavonia Slavonia (; hr, Slavonija) is, with Dalmatia, Croatia proper, and Istria, one of the four historical regions of Croatia. Taking up the east of the country, it roughly corresponds with five Croatian counties: Brod-Posavina, Osijek-Baranja ...

, Croatia. The complex is a part of the

Croatian Army Training and Doctrine Command The Croatian Army Training and Doctrine Command "Fran Krsto Frankopan" ( hr, Zapovjedništvo za obuku i doktrinu HKoV-a "Fran Krsto Frankopan" (ZOD)) is the primary military training organization of the Croatian Army The Croatian Army ( hr, H ...

History

Prior to being used by the Croatian Army, the Gašinci military training grounds was built and used by the Yugoslav Peoples Army (JNA). Captured by Croatian forces in the early days of the

Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between Croat forces loyal to the Government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY)—and the Serb-controlled Yugosl ...

, from 1991-95 Gašinci served as the Croatian Army's primary live-fire training centre. In 2013, a 21-year-old soldier Marko Zalović was killed when he was run over by a M-84 main battle tank that unexpectedly veered from its route and killed the young soldier who was in a trench by the road.

Geography and layout

The Gašinci military training grounds covers 3 263.60 hectares and is divided into two parts. The eastern portion is dedicated to administrative command buildings, training facilities and sports fields; while the western area, which covers 2,100 hectares, is a dedicated training area. Smaller than the Eugen Kvaternik military training ground near Slunj, the Gašinci complex covers an area of 7.5 x 5 kilometers and is best suited for training individuals and smaller groups at the company and battalion level. The complex is capable of providing logistical support for exercises and hosting a variety of training events for the firing of weapons, including: small arms, anti-tank rockets, artillery and armoured vehicles

References

{{coord missing, Croatia Military of Croatia Military installations of Croatia Osijek-Baranja County