RFE
26 Jun 2025, 04:19 GMT+10
Serbia is halting all ammunition exports following a decision by President Aleksandar Vucic as the Balkan country faces challenges over exports to Israel and Moscow's suspicions that ammunition made in Serbia has made its way to Ukraine.
We've halted literally everything, and we are supplying our army, Vucic said on June 23 after reporters asked whether Serbia had chosen a side in the Israeli-Iranian conflict by exporting ammunition to Israel.
Vucictold reportersafter attending a meeting with the Armed Forces Chief of General Staff that Serbia's arms exports to Israel following the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas was one thing, and that today we have a different situation.
Several hours after Vucic's comments, the Serbian Ministry of Defense said that any future exports of arms manufactured in Serbia would require the consent of the country's National Security Council and permission from other relevant authorities.
Serbia also has faced pressure from Moscow, which recently criticized Serbia's position on arms exports. Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) accused Serbia of exporting arms to Ukraine via third countries.
Ammunition produced at Serbian defense enterprises, primarily for heavy long-range systems, is sent to NATO countries in the interests of Ukraine in the form of complete sets of parts for assembly, the SVR claimed in astatementon June 23.
This allows Kyiv to formally receive military products that are no longer Serbian, but assembled at weapons factories in Western countries.
SEE ALSO:
Western Balkan Countries Reaffirm Support For Ukraine At Summit In Tirana
Serbia's Ministry of Defense didn't respond to RFE/RL's requests to confirm or deny the SVR's allegations, which have not been addressed by Vucic or other Serbian officials.
According to the SVR, Serbia's ammunition exports to Ukraine have strained ties between Belgrade and Moscow.
It is regrettable that now these traditions of friendship and mutual assistance are crossed out by the thirst for profit and cowardly multi-vectorism, the SVR said in the statement.
It claimed that the assembly and loading of ammunition produced in Serbia is carried out primarily in the Czech Republic and Bulgaria.
Neither the Czech nor the Bulgarian foreign ministry was available to comment on the Russian allegations following inquiries by RFE/RL.
The Bulgarian military company EMCO Ltd., designated by the Russian SVR as one of the companies to which Serbia delivers ammunition for further shipment to Ukraine, strongly denied these allegations in comments to RFE/RL, calling them unfounded.
We declare that this is not true. EMCO has not exported any material for the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine for about 10 years, the company said.
For more than three years, Vucic has endured pressure from both Brussels and Washington to impose sanctions on Russia after its unprecedented full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
In May he made his first visit to Moscow since its invasion of Ukraine and met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, raising concern in Brussels.
Moscow, Russia--Russian President Vladimir Putin greets Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, May 9 2025
The European Commission on May 8advisedVucic to refrain from giving legitimacy to Putin's aggression against Ukraine.
Vucic earlier this month received praise for Serbia's support from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Odesa, wherethe two meton the margins of the Ukraine-South East Europe Summit.
Serbia's official stance is that it fully respects Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty. However, it has not joined Western sanctions against Moscow despite being a candidate country for the EU membership.
Media reports on Serbia's ammunition exports to Ukraine, which Vucic and other top Serbian officials have denied, have been mounting over the years.
In June 2024, the Financial Times reported that Serbias ammunition exports arriving in Ukraine via third parties totaled around 800 million euros since 2022.
Commenting on these estimates at the time, Vucic said that export was a part of [Serbia's] economic revival and important for us.
"Yes, we do export our ammunition," he said in an interview with theFinancial Times. "We cannot export to Ukraine or to Russia but we have had many contracts with Americans, Spaniards, Czechs, others. What they do with that in the end is their job."
Precise data on what weapons and military equipment and in what quantities Serbia exports to Ukraine, Israel, and other countries is not publicly available, as in recent years the relevant ministry has not published annual reports on issued export permits on its website.
Get a daily dose of Yorkshire Observer news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Yorkshire Observer.
More Information(250627) -- MINSK, June 27, 2025 (Xinhua) -- Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko (R) welcomes Russian President Vladimir Putin...
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 27 (ANI): Domestic stock indices opened with gains for the fourth straight session on Friday, supported...
Wellington [New Zealand], June 27 (ANI): Several key players made their comeback as New Zealand announced a 15-member squad for next...
BEIJING, June 27 (Xinhua) -- In a dim karaoke room, lights flicker to a thumping beat. Drugs sit openly on the table, untouched. This...
Tehran [Iran], June 27 (ANI): Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei claimed US President Donald Trump had 'exaggerated' the...
Washington, DC [US], June 27 (ANI): US President Donald Trump said on Thursday (US local time) that America has signed a deal with...
New Delhi [India], June 27 (ANI): Kerala Blasters FC have carved out their identity as one of the most iconic clubs in the Indian Super...
Chiang Mai [Thailand], June 27 (ANI): For the Blue Tigresses, the AFC Women's Asian Cup isn't only about competing against the continent's...
(250627) -- ORLANDO, June 27, 2025 (Xinhua) -- Players of Manchester City celebrate scoring during the group G match between Italy's...
Andrey Belousov has called New Delhi a traditional friend in the military-technical sector Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov...
London [UK], June 26 (ANI): Global leaders and advocates gathered at the Commonwealth Secretariat in London on Tuesday for the International...
CHANGZHOU, June 25 (Xinhua) -- The 2025 Jiangsu Football City League, dubbed with Su Super League, -- made up of 13 city teams competing...