Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Hopes Serbia Will Not Supply Ukraine with Weapons

Maria Zakharova (Beta/Milos Miskov)

Spokeswoman for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maria Zakharova expressed hope on Nov. 7 that Serbia would keep its promise not to arm Ukraine.

“The proceeding point for us is that Belgrade will strictly honour its promises,” Zakharova said at a Nov. 7 briefing, commenting on Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic’s remarks about the sale of weapons to the European Union, even if they ended up in Ukraine. According to RIA Novosti, she was explicit that “the Serbian leader gives one type of statements when in Moscow, and a completely different kind in other regions, which creates the impression that there may be another President Vucic in Serbia.”

“On several occasions, including those at the highest level, we would receive assurances from the Serbian leadership that the export of ammunition produced in Serbia is under strict control, and that it would not be delivered to Ukraine, to prevent Kyiv from using it against our soldiers,” Zakharova stressed, recalling that Russian troops had come to the aid of the friendly Serbian people several times.

The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) had reported earlier that Belgrade was supplying Kyiv with ammunition, despite its proclaimed neutrality. After that, Vucic promised that contracts would be cancelled if the authorities in Serbia should have any doubt as to the corresponding documentation or the end-user of the products.