Serbia has turned to Russia for assistance in battling wildfires, after Serbian authorities said the European Union currently does not have firefighting aircraft with sufficient capacity available.
A Russian Emergency Situations Ministry IL-76P firefighting aircraft landed in Niš on Wednesday evening and was deployed on Thursday to fight a wildfire in the protected Deliblatska Peščara nature reserve, where fires have continued for weeks.
Although Serbia is not an EU member, it has access to the bloc’s emergency assistance through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.
However, widespread wildfires across several European countries this summer have placed significant pressure on the EU’s available firefighting resources.
“Given that there are currently no firefighting aircraft of this capacity available within the EU, the Russian aircraft will significantly strengthen our firefighting capabilities,” said Luka Čaušić, director of the Emergency Situations Department at Serbia’s Ministry of Interior.
The European Commission, however, said Serbia has not activated the EU Civil Protection Mechanism so far.
A Commission spokesperson said the EU remains ready to mobilize assistance based on Serbia’s needs on the ground.
