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Brother without brother: Serbia discusses visa waiver with Russia by the end of the year
Discussions on the abolition of visa-free travel with Russia have intensified in Serbia, the republic's parliament told Izvestia. Experts admit the adoption of this decision, although it will lead to serious political and economic consequences. Part of the Serbian elite is committed to rapprochement with the West, but Belgrade as a whole is pursuing a multi-vector course, Russian Ambassador to Serbia Alexander Botan-Kharchenko told Izvestia. Earlier, Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic said that relations between Russia and Serbia should not be called fraternal, and the Serbian military conducted joint exercises with NATO for the first time. What the pro—Western forces in Belgrade are trying to achieve and whether the country will eventually move away from Moscow is in the Izvestia article.
Prospects of relations between Russia and Serbia
Anti-Russian initiatives are gaining momentum in Serbia. In particular, the authorities are discussing the possible abolition of the visa-free regime with the Russian Federation for EU membership, Dragan Stanojevic, head of the Serbian Parliament's Committee on Diaspora and Serbs in the region, told Izvestia.
— I believe that we are far from joining and from abolishing the visa regime, because the Serbian authorities just did not have enough for complete surrender, which leads to an aggravation of the situation and a critical loss of support among the population, — said Dragan Stanojevic.
Izvestia has sent a request to the European Commission and the Serbian government.
It is very significant that a few days ago, the speaker of the Serbian parliament, Ana Brnabic, said at a conference in Prague that she did not consider relations between Moscow and Belgrade to be fraternal. And Serbia, according to her, does not impose sanctions against Russia only because it was under the influence of restrictions in the 1990s.
Part of the Serbian political elite is indeed focused on rapprochement with the West, but on the whole the country is pursuing a balanced multi-vector course in the international arena, Russian Ambassador to Belgrade Alexander Botan-Kharchenko told Izvestia.
"In addition, Serbian society, which is well aware of the "double standards" and the bias of Westerners, reasonably views the country's "European path" with a fair degree of skepticism," the diplomat stressed.
He clarified that the mechanisms of Russian-Serbian cooperation continue to function properly. This applies to all key areas — political, economic, cultural, humanitarian and inter-parliamentary.
— Despite the increasing pressure from the European Union, Belgrade does not join the illegitimate anti-Russian sanctions. We consider such a consistent position as confirmation of Serbia's independent, balanced foreign policy course," Botan-Kharchenko stressed.
Nevertheless, last year the country's Foreign Ministry announced that by the end of 2026 Belgrade would synchronize its visa policy with the European one. Back in 2023, the authorities, for example, canceled the visa-free regime with Cuba and stopped flights to this country. Then visas were introduced for residents of Qatar, Kuwait, Mongolia and Oman.
Now, obviously, they have taken up Russia. Earlier, Izvestia wrote that the EC has already demanded that Belgrade reduce by 50% the issuance of passports and residence permits to Russians. As for visa-free travel, according to the agreement of 2009, Russian citizens can now freely stay in Serbia for no more than 30 days. Last year, 174 thousand tourists from Russia visited the Balkan Republic. And last year, the tourist flow from Serbia to Russia increased by 6%. In this regard, the local airline Air Serbia maintains direct flights to Russia, and Belgrade has thus become a transit hub for Russians traveling to Europe and North America.
However, in April of this year, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic announced that Belgrade still plans to fulfill all the criteria for EU membership by the end of 2026. Moreover, he emphasized that this concerns issues of migration and visa policy. Brussels, however, is careful in its promises: the EEA representatives call 2030 a benchmark for EU membership.
In an interview with Izvestia, Elena Ponomareva, a professor at MGIMO of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, did not rule out that Serbia could cancel visa-free travel. Take Montenegro, for example, another country that must cancel visa—free travel with the Russian Federation in order to join the EU. In the past, a small state closely linked to Russia eventually became a member of NATO and imposed strict restrictions against Moscow.
Serbia is also following the beaten path: in May, the country conducted military exercises with the North Atlantic Alliance for the first time in its history. Military personnel from Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Romania, the USA, Turkey, France and Montenegro took part in them.
At the same time, Serbian officials had previously stated that there were no plans to introduce a visa regime with the Russian Federation yet due to the risk of economic losses - the tourist flow would decrease, the airline would suffer losses, and capital inflows would decrease. However, more importantly, the abrupt cancellation of visa-free travel with Russia may cause strong public discontent.
"The Serbian authorities just didn't have enough of this for a complete surrender, which leads to an aggravation of the situation and a critical loss of support among the population,— Dragan Stanojevic believes.
By the way, anti-government rallies began again in Serbia in May. In particular, on May 23, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the republic reported about 34 thousand participants of the action in the capital. Early parliamentary elections are expected in the fall, and presidential elections are also possible, as Aleksandar Vucic is thinking about resigning. Therefore, such drastic steps can cause new unrest and disrupt the plans of the Serbian leader to move to the prime minister's chair.
The protests in Serbia have been going on since the end of 2024, and pro-Russian rhetoric is clearly evident among the protesters. However, her degree will depend on the specific figures who will represent the people on the Serbian political scene, concluded a researcher at IMEMO RAS. The pro-Western vector of the Serbian leadership took shape after the overthrow of President Slobodan Milosevic in 2000, Elena Ponomareva believes. This elite has to flirt with the Serbian people, who are overwhelmingly positive towards the Russian Federation.
Anti-Russian rhetoric intensifies in Serbia
Serbia's official political field can be divided into pro-Western and anti-Western forces. The ruling Serbian Progressive Party positions itself as centrists. Government officials most often appeal to pro-Russian rhetoric when communicating with representatives of the Russian Federation and to pro-Western rhetoric when contacting their Western partners, Polina Sergeeva noted.
— The main pro—Western wing is the parliamentary opposition bloc Serbia Against Violence. Pro—Russian rhetoric was inherent in the Socialist Party of Serbia, the politicians of the movement "We are the Voice of the people", representatives of the New Democratic Party of Serbia together with the Serbian Monarchist Party and a deputy of the Russian Party, the political scientist emphasized.
The visa issue is not the only problem polarizing Serbia's political elite or, perhaps, already uniting it.
Ana Brnabic
Immediately after the start of her term, Ana Brnabic, while still serving as prime minister, spoke out in support of Ukraine. In 2023, she took part in sending humanitarian aid, stressing that Belgrade is ready, together with the European Union, to increase support for Kiev.
Officially, Serbia provided Ukraine with only financial and humanitarian assistance. However, last year, the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service reported that Serbian companies were supplying ammunition to Ukraine through NATO countries. Alexander Vucic then suspended the export of weapons and proposed to create a working group with Russia on this issue. According to Dragan Stanoevich, arms supplies can continue even now through "third parties."
Ana Brnabic is one of Aleksandar Vucic's most loyal supporters, so her words show the sentiments of the Serbian political elite. She received her higher education in the United States, and then worked for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). In fact, Brnabic is part of the pro—Western wing of the Serbian elite, whose main goal is Serbia's accession to the EU.
Moreover, this process has accelerated recently, and a special task force was created in January for this purpose, Polina Sergeeva, a researcher at the Department of European Political Studies at the IMEMO RAS, told Izvestia. It includes Ana Brnabic, First Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Sinisha Mali, Interior Minister Ivica Dacic.
"Pro—Western rhetoric, if understood as solidarity with the government's goal of speedy integration into the EU, is intensifying even among traditional Russophile politicians," the expert noted.
The continuation of the Russian-Serbian humanitarian center in Nis also depends on Serbia's integration into the EU. It was created in 2012 to help eliminate the consequences of an emergency. According to EU officials, the Niche center duplicates the functions of the EU Emergency Response Coordination Center. If Brussels' sanctions policy towards Russia continues, pressure will be put on Belgrade even more, demanding that joint projects with the Russian Federation be stopped.
— Serbia's pro-European vector is gradually strengthening, and the area of activity of European institutions is expanding. This is our "merit" because the Russian Federation is very inactive in all areas, including research grants, education, and the formation of a pool of journalists," Ponomareva said.
View of the NIS oil refinery
The expert drew attention to the reduction of Russia's economic presence in Serbia, including the oil and gas sector. NIS, the country's leading enterprise, was sanctioned by the United States due to the fact that Russian Gazprom and Gazprom Neft owned its controlling stake. The Serbian authorities offered to buy out a stake in the company for € 600 million, but then it became known that the assets would be sold to the Hungarian oil and gas group MOL.
Nevertheless, Russia is important to Belgrade as an ally in the United Nations, a supplier of resources and weapons, as well as a source of investment and tourists. At least, the Serbian leadership can be given credit for Vucic's visit to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War. However, one cannot help but notice the gradual ousting of the Russian Federation from various spheres of Serbia, contrary to the will of the Serbian people themselves. The situation in the Balkans remains difficult, and losing the trust of its main ally is hardly in Belgrade's interests.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
