Defense Minister Claims Serbia Provided Neither Russia nor Ukraine with Arms

Milos Vucevic (BETAPHOTO/MILOS MISKOV)

Serbia’s Defense Minister Milos Vucevic said on March 7 that the country’s defense industry does not supply munitions to parties engaged in armed conflict. This is particularly true of the current war in Ukraine, Vucevic stressed.

“We haven’t exported a single weapon to [either of] those two countries. We are a fair country which abides by its international obligations,” the minister told Pink TV, claiming that the current allegations of Serbia selling arms to Ukraine via Turkey are “false.”

According to him, Serbia only provides munitions to countries which are allowed to purchase them. In addition, each export contract contains a clause ensuring that said munitions cannot be re-exported without Serbia’s explicit permission – which is not granted if the intended destination is a war zone, Vucevic explained.

With regards to equipping the Army of Serbia, Vucevic recalled that several thousand loitering munitions were recently purchased from the United Arab Emirates at the International Defense Exhibition (IDEX) in Abu Dhabi. The first batch of these so-called ‘suicide drones’ should be delivered to Serbia by the end of the year.

Aside from this purchase, the state plans to invest an additional EUR400 million into Serbia’s defense sector, with EUR100 million intended for new defense industry technologies, and EUR300 million for the purchase of weapons for the Serbian armed forces. At least 20 percent of the country’s defense industry output will be retained for Serbian Army use, Vucevic said, explaining that strengthening the Serbian military is an effective deterrent for those who do not wish the country well.