Palmer threatens sanctions if Serbia buys Russian missile systems

Matthew Palmer (BETA/Milos Miskov)

U.S. Special Representative for the Western Balkans Matthew Palmer voiced on Nov. 2 the U.S.'s concern with the presence of Russian military equipment in Serbia, threatening sanctions if Belgrade decides to buy Russian missile systems.

"There is a degree of concern over the deployment of Russian military equipment in the territory of Serbia, as well as over the possibility of Serbia seeking specific Russian systems. If so, the country runs the risk of facing specific sanctions for buying Russian military equipment. We hope that our Serbian partners are aware of that," Palmer said in an interview with the Alsat-M national broadcaster.

The U.S. diplomat was answering a reporter's question about the U.S.'s stance on a recent military drill by the Serbian and Russian armies called, Slavic Shield, and the presence of Russia's S-400 missile system in Belgrade.

Palmer underlined that the U.S. was Serbia's major military partner, and that the Ohio National Guard played a considerable role in that partnership, but that it didn't mean that Belgrade should not cooperate and build a military partnership with Russia.

Russia's S-400 anti-aircarft weapon system made a debut outside Russian territory at the Slavic Shield 2019 exercise.