President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić has confirmed that he plans to attend the military parade in the Russian capital, Moscow, on May 9, despite warnings from European officials who stated that such a visit could jeopardize Serbia’s EU accession prospects.
According to the Associated Press, Vučić acknowledged that a Serbian military unit will take part in the May 9 parade on Red Square in the capital of Russia, which has been waging a full-scale war against Ukraine for the fourth consecutive year. He also stated that Serbia is participating in the “joint” organization of the parade for the first time.
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“In the coming period, we will be under pressure regarding the event in Moscow in which we have announced our participation,” Vučić told reporters.
Earlier media reports indicated that Serbia could risk its EU membership ambitions if Vučić proceeds with his visit to Russia to attend the parade, which is hosted by Russian autocrat Vladimir Putin.
Earlier this week, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the bloc “made it very clear that we do not want any candidate country to participate in these events on the 9th of May in Moscow.”
Vučić also said he intends to travel to Moscow with his political ally, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico. The Slovak leader criticized Kaja Kallas for her remarks discouraging European leaders from attending the Moscow events, calling her comments “disrespectful.”
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Earlier this month, Kyiv Post reported that at least two “major leaders” have held secret talks with Putin since the start of the war in Ukraine, according to Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić.
Journalists suggested the leaders in question might be Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Fico, both of whom visited Moscow in 2024.
However, Vučić denied this, clarifying that he was not referring to them. He hinted that the individuals involved in the secret negotiations with Putin were, in fact, those who had publicly condemned the Russian president’s actions.
Vučić stated he had not met with Putin since December 2021, when they held a meeting in Sochi.
The largest anti-government protests in Serbia in more than two decades have shaken the capital and spread nationwide, bringing hundreds of thousands to the streets in scenes not seen since the fall of Slobodan Milošević.
What began as student-led demonstrations against corruption and creeping authoritarianism has now ballooned into a full-blown political crisis for Vučić’s government.
As the standoff deepens, a familiar actor has emerged to help tip the balance: Russia.
In a move that has raised alarm in Western capitals, senior Serbian officials confirmed last week that Russian intelligence officers have been assisting the government in managing the protests, from providing surveillance coordination to offering crowd control logistics.
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