Ammunition produced in defense factories in Serbia, mainly for long-range heavy systems, is being sent to NATO member countries to aid Ukraine, in the form of complete assembly kits, the media office of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has announced.
“This allows Kyiv to formally receive military industry equipment that, at that stage, is no longer Serbian, as it is assembled in weapons factories in Western countries. The assembly and filling of the ammunition is mainly done in the Czech Republic and Bulgaria,” the statement dated June 23 says, published on the official website of the Russian service.
The announcement adds that, according to information obtained by Russian foreign intelligence, “the Ukrainian army is very grateful to Serbian arms and ammunition manufacturers for their contribution to maintaining the combat readiness of the armed forces of Ukraine.”
It is also stated that, based on this data, the “Krušik” factory from Valjevo, in western Serbia, sold several large batches of 122 mm rocket assembly kits for the “Grad” rocket system to the Czech company “Policske Strojirny.” Meanwhile, the company “Eling,” according to the same source, sent kits for producing the same rockets, as well as 120 mm caliber mines, to the Bulgarian company “EMKO.”
The communiqué emphasizes that Serbian producers of weaponry and military equipment “are aware of the true end-users of their products.”
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić stated on June 23 that Serbia has stopped exporting weapons. His statement comes amid the conflict between Israel and Iran. During a statement to journalists, Vučić also addressed the accusations of exporting ammunition to Ukraine.
“After we saw that (ammunition) had appeared in Ukraine, both sides are complaining. And the only way to change this is for me to say: for a while, all ammunition will go only to our military depots,” Vučić said.
Exact data on what kind of weaponry and military equipment, and in what quantity, Serbia exports to Ukraine, Israel, or other countries, is not publicly available. The relevant ministry has not published annual reports on licenses issued for exports, at least in recent years.
Responding to criticisms over arms exports, Vučić said he cares about the country’s security but also about the workers in the defense industry, where the ammunition that Serbia exports is produced.
This is not the first time that the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service has accused Serbia of sending ammunition to Ukraine. In a previous statement on May 28, this service claimed that Serbia, “despite its officially declared neutrality,” continues military deliveries to Ukraine.
The reaction from Moscow follows years of media reports that weapons and ammunition from Serbia end up in the hands of Ukrainian soldiers through third countries.
Officials in Belgrade have consistently denied that Serbia exports weapons directly to Ukraine or Russia, declaring that “they have no control” over where the weaponry sold by Serbia ends up once it passes through other countries.
