Serbia has expressed its willingness to support European Union sanctions against Russia, but with one clear condition: strong guarantees for EU membership.
This was stated by the Serbian Minister for European Integration, Nemanja Starovic, in an interview with the Austrian daily Der Standard, causing waves of reactions at home and abroad.
His statement comes at a time when Serbia has already allowed the transit of 960 155mm artillery shells destined for Ukraine through its territory. The shells were manufactured in Bosnia and Herzegovina, purchased by the Czech company Omnipol – which officially supplies the Ukrainian military – and passed through Serbia with the full approval of all relevant Serbian ministries.
According to official documents, it reports TodayOn June 12, the Serbian Ministry of Interior, with the consent of the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, approved the transit permit. Trucks with 132 pallets of shells were allowed to cross the Sremska Rača border crossing, through Serbia, and exit into the EU via Horgoš, following a designated route: from the village of Kuzmin, the E-70 road to Belgrade, then on the E-75 towards the Hungarian border.
In the documents, the Czech Republic’s Ministry of Defense is listed as the end user of the ammunition – a clear signal of Serbia’s involvement in the logistical supply chain of weapons for Ukraine, despite its official neutral position towards the war.
The development has been described by pro-Kremlin media as a blow to Russia. A media outlet owned by Konstantin Malofeyev, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, warned: “It will be as always with traitors.”
There was no shortage of reactions in Serbia. The “Movement of Socialists” party, close to the pro-Russian political spectrum, criticized Minister Starovic’s statement and support for sanctions.
“Belgrade does not intend to participate in anti-Russian hysteria,” the response states, which further adds that “Serbs are not a nation of traitors and cowards who sell their mother, brothers, faith and history,” reinforcing the narrative of historical ties with Moscow.
This development comes in a complicated context for Serbian foreign policy, which is trying to balance Western pressure to harmonize foreign policy with the EU and the continued support it has had from Russia, especially on the issue of Kosovo.
Whether Serbia will follow the path of sanctions against Russia remains to be seen – but recent signals, such as the transit of arms to Ukraine, are leading Belgrade towards a course closer to the West, at the price of a possible clash with Moscow.