Historic ties between Russia and Serbia are deepening even as the European Union attempts to improve its own relationship with Belgrade. Since the beginning of the year, Russia has sought to increase its trade with Serbia, while the latter has pursued Russian assistance in upgrading its military capabilities (see EDM, September 8). Consequently, Serbia is now emerging as a country where competing policies of the United States, the European Union and Russia vie for influence. In recent months, EU officials and institutions repeatedly recommended that the first accession chapters on Serbia’s membership in the economic-political bloc be opened by early …read more
Source: The Jamestown Foundation