Russia is demanding an official statement from its ally Serbia on media reports that the Balkan country has supplied thousands of missiles to Ukraine
March 3, 2023 6:23 am ET
• 2 minutes reading time
BELGRADE, Serbia – Russia is asking its ally Serbia for an official statement over reports that the Balkan country has supplied thousands of missiles to Ukraine for its fight against the Russian invasion.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova expressed “deepest concern” at the reports, which first emerged from Russian pro-government media last month.
“We are following this story,” Zakharova said in a statement published on the Russian Foreign Ministry website late Thursday. She added that Ukraine’s possible rearmament poses a “serious issue” for Serbian-Russian relations.
According to media reports, a Serbian state arms factory has recently supplied around 3,500 rockets for the Grad multiple rocket launchers used by both Ukrainian and Russian armed forces. The 122mm rockets were allegedly transported to Ukraine via Turkey and Slovakia.
Serbian Defense Minister Milos Vucevic has denied that the country exported the missiles to Ukraine, but left open the possibility that they could have gotten there via a third party.
“When private companies buy arms in third-country markets and then sell them to other companies in other countries, this is not a question for Serbia, this is international trade,” he said.
Serbia is Moscow’s closest ally in Europe, with historical, religious and cultural ties strengthened by decades of pro-Russian propaganda campaigns in the Balkan country.
Russia supports Serbia’s claim to its former province of Kosovo, which declared independence in 2008 with Western backing. And Serbia has refused to impose sanctions on Moscow over the invasion.
Western officials fear Russia could use simmering tensions in Kosovo to try to destabilize the Balkans and divert some attention from invading Ukraine.
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