Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has reacted to a report by the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service that Serbian defense companies, with the participation of third countries, including the Czech Republic, Poland, Bulgaria and some African countries, allegedly continue to supply ammunition to Ukraine, despite the countryʼs neutrality. Vučić said that some of the claims are false, but that Serbia and Russia will jointly investigate how Serbian-made ammunition got to Ukraine.
His words are reported by Reuters and the local newspaper Novosti.
"We have formed a working group together with Russian partners to establish the facts. Some of the things that are being claimed are not true," the Serbian president said.
According to him, he discussed with Putin the issue of arms exports from Serbia to Ukraine — "both in the presence of several people from both delegations and face to face".
At the same time, back in June 2024, the FT wrote that Serbia was increasing its sales of Western ammunition, which then ended up in Ukraine. This involved shells worth almost €800 million. At the time, Vučić called this amount generally accurate and presented the situation as a business opportunity, insisting that he was not joining any of the parties to the conflict. This amount had been accumulated since 2022.
Now Vučić says that Serbia has a contract with the Czech Republic, but “no permission was given and no missiles were supplied.” The Serbian president stressed that contracts will not be fulfilled if there is suspicion that the end recipients are using the products for purposes other than their intended purpose or sending them to battlefields without Serbia’s knowledge.
"Our factories must live and work. Almost 24 000 people work directly in the defense industry," Vucic said, adding that the attacks on Serbia were caused by its "independent foreign policy".
According to Radio Libertyʼs Balkan Service, an explosion occurred on May 30 at the Serbian defense plant Krušik, which produces ammunition, injuring five people. The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service mentioned this particular enterprise in a May 29 report about Serbian ammunition supplies.
The explosion occurred during scheduled work to press penterite, a high explosive used in bombs and shells.
- Reuters, citing a secret Pentagon document, wrote back in 2023 that Serbia agreed to supply weapons to Kyiv, despite the countryʼs declared military neutrality.
- Serbia is traditionally one of Russiaʼs closest allies in Europe, which has slowed down the countryʼs European integration path. It also has close economic ties with Russia. Since the beginning of the invasion, Serbia has resisted pressure from the European Union and has not imposed sanctions against Russia, although it has the status of a candidate country for EU membership and therefore must pursue a common foreign policy with the European Union.
- Serbia does not support Western sanctions against Russia, treating it favorably and counting on Moscow to block international recognition of Kosovo. Kosovo is a partially recognized state inhabited by Albanians. Previously, Kosovo was an autonomy within Serbia, but in 1991 the district declared independence and held a referendum. The country has been recognized by almost 100 countries around the world. Serbia does not recognize Kosovoʼs independence.
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