The European Union has repeated calls on Serbia to join the Union in imposing sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
Serbia is the only country in Europe to refuse imposing sanctions on Russia, or even condemn the invasion, if one excludes Belarus, given the country’s direct involvement in the Russian aggression.
A front-runner to join the EU, Serbia was granted candidate status for membership in 2012.
Candidate countries are expected to align their international and security policy with that of the European Union, which Serbia has always evaded vis-à-vis sanctions against Russia without any consequences from the EU. This is just another of Serbia’s several refusals to back the EU sanctions against Russia since the invasion of Crimea in 2014.
European Commission spokesperson Ana Pisonero reminded Serbia of this requirement on Monday, Radio Free Europe reported. Chief spokesperson Eric Mamer stressed that they expected “friends, neighbors and partner countries” of the union to put in place sanctions against Russia, calling this a “historic moment”.
Serbia is Russia’s closest ally in the region. In recent years, it has beefed up its military with Russian fighter jets, helicopters, tanks and other heavy weapons.
The EU is the largest donor, and the biggest investor and trading partner of Serbia.
