Serbia in a Difficult Position

BETAPHOTO/DRAGAN GOJIC

The U.S. sanctions against the Serbian oil corporation, Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS), officially imposed on Oct. 9 due to Russia’s majority stake in NIS, have deadlocked Serbia, because any solution that might secure the smooth operation of the company must be acceptable to Moscow, too. As Serbia remains largely dependent on Russia in terms of energy supply, the nationalization of the Russian share in NIS, which is also an option, would create a risk for Belgrade to lose much-needed Russian gas.