Ambassador: Serbia can count on ‘any support’ from Russia

by Bojana Zimonjic Jelisavac

The Russian ambassador to Belgrade said on Thursday Serbia can count on “any support from Russia” but refused to explicitly confirm or deny whether this could also entail military aid.

Speaking in a televised interview with MONDO, Alexander Botsan-Kharchenko said, “support to Serbia has always been a key point and basis of our activities on the international level”.

Serbia is one of Russia’s traditional allies and has refused to join international sanctions against Moscow, although it backed two UN resolutions condemning Russia in 2022.

“When and if friendly and fraternal relations are at stake, I am convinced, and this was said at the highest level, that Serbia and the Serbian people can count on any support from Russia,” Botsan-Kharchenko said.

Asked if this could mean entering an armed conflict because of Serbia, he replied: “Everything depends on the situation.”

“I’m telling you, Serbia can count on any help that would be effective and necessary in concrete circumstances,” Botsan-Kharchenko said.

He refused to be drawn further, quoting “hostile interpretations of anything” Russia says.

“I have no desire to give food to the enemies, that’s why I answer like this – everything depends on the assessment and the specific situation in which Serbia and Russia would find themselves.”

Speaking about Ukraine, the ambassador insisted that Moscow was not at war with Kyiv or the Ukrainian people, instead using Russia’s official line of conducting a “special military operation”.

“The tasks that must be carried out remain the same as the Russian president emphasised on February 24, 2022 – to ensure safety, security, and a peaceful life for the people of the Donbas, the Russian people in Ukraine who have been exposed to pressure, genocide and bans for years.”

*first published in: Euractiv.com