Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused the European Union of exerting significant pressure on Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, claiming that Brussels is effectively “blackmailing” Belgrade over Serbia’s path toward EU membership.
Lavrov made the remarks in an interview with Russian media outlet Vesti, in his first reaction by a senior Russian official following Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to Belgrade last week.
“It is not easy for Serbia’s president, Aleksandar Vučić. He is a very experienced politician and is committed to the path of European integration,” Lavrov said.
According to Lavrov, the EU has conditioned further progress in Serbia’s accession process on two demands: recognition of Kosovo’s independence and alignment with EU measures against Russia.
“The EU is pressuring him, simply blackmailing him,” Lavrov claimed.
He argued that Vučić has faced such pressure for years.
Lavrov also discussed energy cooperation between Russia and Serbia, claiming that Moscow supplies Serbia with gas at favorable prices and asks for nothing in return other than that Serbia refrain from participating in the arming of Ukraine.
Commenting on Vučić’s meeting with Zelenskyy, Lavrov suggested that Serbia’s willingness to engage with the Ukrainian president could be an attempt to ease pressure from Brussels.
He described the alleged EU pressure as “brazen and vulgar,” adding that European countries were acting as though they had already established a “Fourth Reich.”
Lavrov also addressed a question posed by German journalist Michael Martens to Zelenskyy during the press conference in Belgrade regarding Serbia’s alleged arms sales to third parties. He said Vučić appeared “surprised” by the question.
“Of course, we would like to hear some kind of reaction from our Serbian friends, given their significant contribution to the victory over Nazism,” Lavrov concluded.
