Vucic promised targeted reconstruction and emergency assistance but stopped short of joining calls for increased military backing, leaving regional tensions unresolved.
Kyiv/Belgrade, July 15. Serbia said it would provide Ukraine with additional humanitarian aid, but would not sign the regional call for continued security support for the country and heightened pressure on Russia, said in Kyiv by President Aleksandar Vučić.
Vučić previously met with President Volodymyr Zelensky and participated in the regional summit on Ukraine and Southeast Europe. It was the Serb leader’s first visit to Kyiv in more than ten years; he had previously visited Ukraine during the same summit in Odessa last year.
After the summit, the long-time leader of Serbia, who is considering the possibility of early elections amid more than a year of anti-government protests, pledged Ukraine additional financial, medical, and energy assistance, including support for the reconstruction of an as-yet undetermined city.
So far we have not managed to achieve significant progress, but we will do everything possible to achieve the best results for the Ukrainian people in this city.
– Aleksandar Vučić
Belgrade, which has longstanding ties with Moscow, refuses to participate in Western sanctions against Russia, but has repeatedly condemned Moscow’s policy at the United Nations and expressed support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. He has also met Zelensky several times.
Serbia has submitted an application to join the EU, but Russia remains its largest supplier of gas; the oil company NIS, the majority stake of which is controlled by Gazprom Neft, like Gazprom itself, has significant influence in the region.
The visit comes after the EU candidate countries conference in Belgrade last week. During the event Ukraine’s parliamentary speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk accused Moscow of aggression and of “humiliating” Serbs, Ukrainians, Moldovans, and Georgians.
On Saturday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova criticized Belgrade for the lack of responses to the so-called “hostile anti-Russian remarks” voiced by Stefanchuk.
Since the start of the war, Serbia has provided Ukraine with about 60 million euros in humanitarian and non-military aid. Moscow has repeatedly accused Belgrade of supplying ammunition to Ukraine through intermediaries, but Belgrade denies these accusations.
Serbia emphasizes its support for Ukraine’s European perspective: Kyiv does not recognize Kosovo’s independence, while Belgrade fully recognizes Ukraine, including the territories that have been annexed by Russia since 2014.
Although Serbia maintains close ties with Moscow, it seeks to support Ukraine in its European integration and regional stabilization, while at the same time preserving its own interests and its course toward EU membership.