Serbia’s Deputy Prime Minister, Aleksandar Vulin, met with the Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Sergei Shoigu, in Moscow on Monday during a two-day official visit.
The Serbian government stated in a release that Vulin “expressed his pleasure to continue the cooperation and partnership for the security of both countries.”
Vulin is sanctioned by the United States, among other reasons, due to his ties with Russia.
He also met with Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Alexander Grushko.
The Serbian government announced that during the meeting with Grushko, Vulin thanked Russia for “supporting Serbia in the United Nations General Assembly” and voting against the Srebrenica Resolution.
On May 23, members of the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring July 11 as the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Genocide in Srebrenica.
The adoption of the Resolution was opposed by leaders in Serbia and the Serbian entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Republika Srpska, with the support of Russia and China.
The Serbian government also stated that Vulin is on an official multi-day visit to Russia.
This is his first official visit to Russia since he was appointed Serbia’s Deputy Prime Minister on May 2.
Vulin has traveled to Russia on several occasions since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The last time was in April, when he met in St. Petersburg with the Secretary of the Russian Federation Security Council, Nikolai Patrushev.
In January of this year, Vulin was honored by Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Russian Federal Security Service.
In July 2023, the United States placed Vulin on its sanctions list on suspicions of involvement in corruption and drug trafficking, as well as ties to Russia.
In the past, he has held several political positions, from head of the Office for Kosovo in the Serbian government to leading the defense and internal affairs ministries, and finally serving as the head spy.
Serbia is a candidate for European Union membership but has not aligned its foreign policy with that of Brussels and has not joined sanctions against Russia due to the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
