Russian–Serbian relations

Serbia	Russia
Diplomatic mission
Embassy of Serbia, Moscow	Embassy of Russia, Belgrade
Envoy
Momčilo Babić	Aleksandar Bocan-Harchenko

Russia andSerbia maintain diplomatic relations established in 1816 between theRussian Empire and thePrincipality of Serbia. TheSoviet Union maintainedrelations with theSocialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia until the dissolution and breakup of both countries in 1991. Russia (as solesuccessor of the Soviet Union) established relations with Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (laterSerbia and Montenegro) of which Serbia is considered sole successor.^[1]

While geographically relatively distant, Serbia and Russia have a profound cultural and traditional connection through their sharedSlavic heritage andEastern Orthodox Christian faith, as well as historical alliance spanning centuries.^[2]

After theOttoman invasion of Serbia in the 14th century, Serbian refugees found refuge in Russia.^[3]Lazar the Serb andPachomius the Serb were some of the notable Serbs in Russian medieval history.^[4]Elena Glinskaya, the mother of Russian emperorIvan the Terrible was maternallySerb.^[5] The Orthodox worship ofSaint Sava was established in Russia in the 16th century.^[3]

In the 1750s, in a re-settlement initiated byAustrian ColonelIvan Horvat, a vast number of Orthodox Serbs, mostly from territories controlled by the Habsburg monarchy (the SerbianGrenzers), settled in Russia's military frontier region ofNew Serbia (with the centre inNovomirgorod, mainly in the territory of the present-dayKirovohrad Oblast ofUkraine), as well as inSlavo-Serbia (now mainly the territory of the contestedLuhansk Oblast). In 1764, both territorial entities were incorporated in Russia'sNovorossiya Governorate.^{[citation needed]}

After theOttoman Empire had allied itself withNapoleon in 1806 and wasattacked by Russia andBritain, it sought to meet the demands of theSerbian rebels underKarađorđe.Konstantin Rodofinikin initially proposed that Serbia becomes a protectorate of the Russian Empire and that Russian garrisons be stationed in Serbia, as well as a high representative which would oversee the affairs in the country. Karađorđe refused the proposition, claiming that it would turn Serbia into a Russian province.^[6] At the same time, the Russians offered the Serbs aid and cooperation. The Serbs accepted the Russians′ offer over autonomy under the Ottomans (as set by the "Ičko's Peace") and signed analliance with theRussian Empire in 1807. Karađorđe was to receive arms and military and medical missions; nevertheless, the terms ofRusso-Turkish settlement agreed in 1812 effectively provided for Turkish re-occupation of Serbia and theFirst Serbian Uprising was definitively suppressed in 1813. TheSecond Serbian Uprising achievedSerbian autonomy within the Ottoman Empire, which was internationally recognized through the Russo-TurkishAkkerman Convention and theTreaty of Adrianople. Serbia was thus put under Russian protection, although Russia was unable to exert control as it did inWallachia andMoldavia, territories also dealt with at the Akkerman Convention. Serbian autonomy was briefly abolished by the Ottoman sultan in 1828, then re-granted in 1829. Russian protection was recognized until abolition thereof in 1856, after the Russian defeat in theCrimean War. In 1838, then Prince of SerbiaMiloš Obrenović received the first Russian consul, Gerasim Vashchenko.^[7][8]

In 1876, Serbia, along with thePrincipality of Montenegro, declared independence andwar on the Ottoman Empire. The war eventually ended with Serbian victory in 1878, while Russia had been involved in its ownwar with Turkey, with the final settlement of both wars decided by the great powers at theCongress of Berlin. TheTreaty of Berlin, whose deliberations and decisions were greatly influenced byAustria-Hungary′sGyula Andrássy, recognized Serbia's independence, yet left Serbia's ruling class disgruntled at Russia, who was seen as favoring the newly establishedPrincipality of Bulgaria at the expense of Serbia.^[9] In line with Andrássy's idea that Austria-Hungary, in order to neutralise inimicalirredentist tendencies, should establish close legally binding ties with all her neighbors, with whom she had ethnic connections, Austria-Hungary, which bordered Serbia to the north in modern-day SerbianVojvodina), and the west in modern-dayBosnia and Herzegovina, sought to integrate Serbia economically by concluding a series of trade conventions with her and pressuredMilan Obrenović to enter into a comprehensive bilateral political treaty.^[10] In June 1881, Obrenović and Austria-Hungary concluded asecret convention that effectively turned Serbia into Austria-Hungary's client state.^[11] In turn, Russia in the 1880s intensified her courtship of Montenegro.^[11]

Left:Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky composed theSerbo-Russian March
Right:Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov composed theFantasy on Serbian Themes

Serbia'sPeople's Radical Party, founded byNikola Pašić, gained parliament majority in 1891 and sought to free the country of Austro-Hungarian dependence. Serbia was defeated in thewar with Bulgaria in 1885 and theBulgarian unification was internationally recognized. Meanwhile, tensions between Serbia and Austria-Hungary grew. Serbian pretensions in creating a South Slavic state (Yugoslavism as opposed toAustro-Slavism) put fear in Austria-Hungary of potential devastation of the Austro-Hungarian empire. On the other hand, Russia became increasingly disgruntled with Bulgaria, where the rulers of the German dynasties,Alexander of Battenberg and from 1887Ferdinand I pursued policies that Russia opposed. The visit to Saint Petersburg of Austrian EmperorFranz Joseph and his conference withNicholas II of Russia in 1897 brokered a secret agreement between the two empires to honor and seek to maintain thestatus quo in the Balkans, which was in line with Austria-Hungary's attempts to forestall an emergence of a large Slavic state in the region.^[11][12] The1901 massacres of Serbs in Kosovo was instrumental in causing a diplomatic conflict between Austria-Hungary, which supported the Albanians, and Serbia, which was supported by Russia.^{[citation needed]}

Serbian KingAlexander I wasassassinated in a coup d'état in 1903, which ushered in the end of theObrenović dynasty and the return of the House of Karađorđević. The new political regime of prime ministerNikola Pašić underPeter I re-orientated Serbia towards Russia.^[13] Serbia was supported by Russia in the economicPig War with Austria-Hungary. Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1908; Russia did not interfere in theBosnian crisis.

One of the factors that led to the beginning ofWorld War I was close bilateral relations between theKingdom of Serbia and theRussian Empire. While Russia and Serbia were not formally allied, Russia openly sought political and religious influence in Serbia.^[14] In May 1914, Serbian politics were polarized between two factions, one headed by the Prime Minister Nikola Pašić, and the other by the radical nationalist chief of Military Intelligence, ColonelDragutin Dimitrijević, known by his codename Apis.^{[15][better source needed]} In that month, due to Colonel Dimitrijević's intrigues, Peter I dismissed Pašić's government,^[15] but the Russian Minister in Belgrade intervened to have Pašić's government restored.^[15] Pašić, though he often talked in public, knew that Serbia was near-bankrupt and, having suffered heavy casualties in theBalkan Wars and in the suppression of an Albanian revolt in Kosovo, needed peace in that moment of time.^[15] Since Russia also favoured peace in the Balkans, from the Russian viewpoint, it was desirable to keep Pašić in power.^[15] However, theAssassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand ledAustria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia during theJuly Crisis.^{[citation needed]} Russia mobilized its armed forces in late July ostensibly to defend Serbia, but also to maintain its status as a great power, gain influence in the Balkans and deter Austria-Hungary and theGerman Empire.^{[citation needed]} This led Germany to declare war on Russia, ultimately turning the local conflict intoWorld War I.^{[citation needed]}

A few months after theRussian Revolution in 1917, theRussian Civil War ensued, in which a small number of mercenaries from Serbia fought for both theRussian Whites and theBolsheviks. After the Civil War ended in 1922 in a Bolshevik victory, relations between theKingdom of Yugoslavia and theSoviet Union were frosty. It was not until 1940 that the Kingdom of Yugoslavia formally recognized the Soviet Union and established diplomatic relations, one of the last European countries to do so.^[16][17]

Since 1920, the government of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia welcomed tens of thousands of anti-Bolshevik Russian refugees, mainly those who fled after the final defeat of the Russian Army under GeneralPyotr Wrangel in Crimea in 1920, explaining its hospitality by presenting it as paying back the debt Serbia owed Russia for its intervention on the side of Serbia at the outbreak of World War I.^[17][18] The Kingdom of Yugoslavia became home for 40,000 exiles loyal to the late Russian Empire.^[19] In 1921, at the invitation of the Serbian PatriarchDimitrije, the leadership of theRussian Church in exile moved fromConstantinople to Serbia and in 1922 inSremski Karlovci established a de facto independent ecclesiastical administration that a few years later, was instituted as theRussian Orthodox Church Outside Russia. The exiled Russian clergy's devotion and dedication to the Church was held up as an example by the churchpeople in Serbia.^[20] The Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia's Head MetropolitanAnthony Khrapovitsky was widely viewed as a spiritual leader of all theRussian émigrés until his death in 1936.^[21] Serbian PatriarchVarnava came to be a staunch defender and advocate of the Russian exiles in Yugoslavia and exerted constant pressure on the Royal Court and government to forestall anyrapprochement and establishment of diplomatic relations between the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union.^[22] The Russian community in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia was effectively in a privileged position in a number of ways, as it enjoyed support and protection on the part of the rulingHouse of Karađorđević.^[23]

The Russian military servicemen under the command of GeneralPyotr Wrangel were partly enlisted into the Kingdom of Yugoslavia's Border Guard troops and deployed on the country's southeastern and northwestern borders.^[24] This service was terminated by a law passed in 1922 that abolished the Border Guard troops; in 1923–1924 Wrangel's men were engaged in a contract to build a road betweenKraljevo andRaška.^[24]

At theGenoa Conference in 1922, there occurred a spat between the Soviet Union's delegation and that of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia over the absence of a delegation from Montenegro; a meeting betweenGeorgy Chicherin andMomčilo Ninčić took place on the sidelines of the conference: the sides arrived at a pro forma agreement that the government of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia would prevent further activities of Russian émigrés in its territory.^[16] Nevertheless, Russian émigré activity continued apace: multiple Russian military officers′ associations were set up in Yugoslavia, which in 1924 were united under an umbrella council headed by the seniormost Russian generalsEduard Ekk and Georgiy Rozalion-Soshalsky.^[25] In 1924, a cavalry brigade staffed completely by Wrangel's men was formed under the command of former Russian Empire GeneralSergei Ulagay in order to overthrowAlbania′s pro-Soviet Orthodox leaderFan Noli, who hadseized power in June that year, and re-install MuslimAhmet Zogu, which was carried out in December that year.^[24] In 1924, Wrangel founded theRussian All-Military Union, until 1927 headquartered in Sremski Karlovci, a global organization designed to unite all Russian military officers outside the USSR.^[26] The Russian All-Military Union membership in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia totaled 25,000 in 1934.^[27][28] Department IV of the Russian All-Military Union was headquartered in Belgrade and was in constant liaison with Yugoslavia'sMinistry of the Army and Navy.^[29]

The Soviet intelligence agencies were undertaking efforts to recruit agents in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia from the early 1930s, including from among the émigrés such asLeonid Linitsky, who was exposed and arrested by the King of Yugoslavia's police in 1935.^[30] In 1938, the Soviet government sponsored a plannedcoup d'état designed to remove theStojadinović government, which was resented byEdvard Beneš, the president ofCzechoslovakia and establish an anti-German military regime: Soviet intelligence officerPyotr Zubov was given $200,000 in cash meant for the Serbian military officers selected by the Czechs to execute the coup. The plan failed, as Zubov, after judging the Serbian officers to be unfit for the mission, refused to make advance payment.^[31][32][33]

While Yugoslavia remained a monarchy,Communist elements in Yugoslavia retained some influence in theNational Assembly (in 1920, the governmentprohibited allCommunist activities). Relations between Yugoslavian Communists and the officials of the Soviet Union were extensive. Initial relations, however, remained tense. In 1937, for example,Joseph Stalin had the Secretary-General of theLeague of Communists of Yugoslavia,Milan Gorkić, murdered inMoscow during theGreat Purge.^[34]

TheMarch 1941 coup d'état against the pro-German government of Yugoslavia, while primarily backed by the British government, was also actively supported by Soviet intelligence agencies,GRU andNKVD, following Stalin′s instructions, with a view to strengthening the Soviet Union's strategic position in the Balkans.^[35] On 5 April 1941, the new government of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union signed the Treaty of Friendship and Non-Aggression, which however did not commit the parties to military assistance in case of aggression.^{[36][37][38][39][40]}

According to Soviet GeneralPavel Sudoplatov, the Soviet leadership was shocked by an instant defeat of Yugoslavia in April 1941, after Hitlerreacted to the coup ″promptly and effectively″.^[41] After Germanyattacked the Soviet Union in June 1941, the Soviet Union began to assist the military campaign ofYugoslav Partisans led byTito; and from the autumn of 1944 regularRed Army troops directly participated in battles in cooperation with the Partisans, especially in the territories of present-day Serbia. The most notable of these battles in which Soviet soldiers fought was theBelgrade Offensive.

After the war ended in 1945, KingPeter II was not allowed to return to Yugoslavia; he was formally deposed by Communist-dominatedConstituent Assembly with the state reorganized as a republic and renamedFederal People's Republic of Yugoslavia (from 1963 Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia). Initially, Yugoslavia's Communist regime underJosip Broz Tito was loyal to Joseph Stalin. The latter wanted Yugoslavia to become a member of the Soviet-led block of Communist countries. However, Tito eventually rejected Stalin's pressure and in 1950s became one of the founders of theNon-Aligned Movement, which was regarded as the third way, neither adhering to the U.S.-ledNATO, nor joining the Moscow-dominatedWarsaw Pact.

As early as 1945, the Soviet Union concluded a friendship treaty with Tito, who put signature on behalf of the Regent Council of Yugoslavia.^[42] In the first two years following the war, relations between Yugoslav and the Soviet leadership, which during that period sought to accommodate the Soviet Westernallies demands in Europe, were not entirely free of disagreements on a number of issues, such as Yugoslavia's territorial claims to Italy'sFree Territory of Trieste and the part of Austria'sCarinthia populated byCarinthian Slovenes, Tito's efforts to play a leading role in the entire Balkans region, as well as over Stalin's reluctance to decisively support theGreek Communists in theGreek Civil War, who were actively supported by Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, and Albania.^[43][44] Drastic deterioration in relations occurred in early 1948. In June 1948, Tito did not attend the second conference of theCominform, which was established on the Soviet initiative in 1947 as a coordinating body for Communist parties in the Soviet Union, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Italy, France, Czechoslovakia, Romania, and Yugoslavia. The conference was mostly dedicated to the discussion of the situation in the Communist Party of Yugoslavia. On 28 June 1948, the other member countries adopted a resolution that noted that ″recently the leadership of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia had pursued an incorrect line on the main questions of home and foreign policy, a line which represents a departure fromMarxism-Leninism″; the resolution concluded by stating, ″the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia has placed itself and the Yugoslav Party outside the family of the fraternal Communist Parties, outside the united Communist front and consequently outside the ranks of the Information Bureau.″^[45] The assumption in Moscow was that once it was known that he had lost Soviet approval, Tito would collapse. The expulsion effectively banished Yugoslavia from the international association of socialist states, while other socialist states of Eastern Europe subsequently underwent purges of alleged "Titoists". Stalin took the matter personally and attempted, unsuccessfully, to assassinate Tito on several occasions.^[46]

The following year, the crisis nearly escalated into an armed conflict, as Hungarian and Soviet forces were massing on the northern Yugoslav frontier.^[47] In 1949, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Yugoslavia formally protested against the support rendered by the Soviet Union to a group of Yugoslav citizens who had formed a committee in Moscow in early April to promote ″unfriendly activity against the Yugoslavia".^[48] The Soviet response asserted the Soviet Union's right to offer asylum to "Yugoslav revolutionary emigrants″ and stated that Yugoslavia′s government ″had forfeited the right to expect a friendly attitude″ from the Soviet Union, as it had established an ″anti-Communist and anti-democratic terrorist regime″ in Yugoslavia and was fighting against the Soviet Union.^[49] In November 1949, the Kominform adopted another resolution which stated that the Communist Party of Yugoslavia had been hijacked by a group of ″murderers and spies" and declared that fighting against the "Tito gang" was a duty of all communist and workers′ parties.^[50][51]

After Stalin's death, relations underwent normalization heralded by the signing of theBelgrade declaration in 1955, which expressly rescinded Stalin's policies towards Yugoslavia. Nevertheless, the Yugoslavia never joined the Soviet-led political and military block of socialist countries and remained one of the leading members of theNon-Aligned Movement, a grouping of countries that sought to be neutral in theCold War. However, Yugoslav government's permission to Soviet Air Force to fly over the country, allowed Soviet Union to send advisors, weapons and troops to Egypt between Six-Day War and Yom Kippur War.^[52] Economic and cultural ties between the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia developed successfully until the late 1980s.

Thebreakup of Yugoslavia and thedissolution of the Soviet Union occurred simultaneously. Throughout the 1990s,Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was hard hit with UN sanctions; meanwhile Russia was undergoing painful structural reforms that were accompanied by asteady economic decline until 1999. Relations between the countries were largely neglected.

In 1998, theKosovo War began, followed by break-up of relations between Yugoslavia and the West and to theNATO bombing of Yugoslavia, which Russia strongly condemned. Russian presidentBoris Yeltsin described NATO's military action against sovereign Yugoslavia as an ″open aggression″.^[53] Russia condemnedNATO at theUnited Nations and supported the statement that NATO air strikes on Serbia were an illegal military action.^[53] Volunteers and mercenaries from Russia were cited to have gone to Kosovo in large numbers to fight theKLA, and to resist and complicateNATO operations.^[54] Around the time of the bombing, a Russia-friendly rhetoric developed in the Serbian leadership asBorislav Milošević, the brother ofSlobodan Milošević and the Yugoslav ambassador to Moscow at the time, proposed joining the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia theUnion State composed ofBelarus and Russia.^[55]

Formalized by the 2013 Strategic Partnership Declaration, Serbia and Russia maintain robust political ties, with about seventy bilateral treaties covering trade, energy, military, and cultural cooperation. High-level visits, such as those of presidents of Serbia to Moscow (Boris Tadić in 2004 and 2009,Tomislav Nikolić in 2012 and 2016, andAleksandar Vučić in 2019, 2020, and 2021) and presidents of Russia to Belgrade (Vladimir Putin 2000, 2011, 2014, and 2019;Dmitry Medvedev in 2009) underscore close relationship between two countries.^[56] However, some observers call them increasingly pragmatic, with Serbia leveraging Russia to balance EU pressure while Russia uses Serbia to counter Western influence in the Balkans.^[57]

Serbia did not impose sanctions on Russia following the start of theRusso-Ukrainian War in 2014.^[58] In response to theRussian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, president Aleksandar Vučić stated that while Serbia felt it was wrong for Russia to violate the territorial integrity of Ukraine, it also emphasized that Serbia's foreign policy choices are driven by national interests and respect for traditional friendships.^[59][60][61] In March 2022, however, Serbia voted in favour of theUN General Assembly resolution condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine voted following month in favour of expelling Russia from theUN Human Rights Council.^[62][63] In 2023, Vučić emphasized that Serbia cannot and will not support Russia's invasion of Ukraine, stating, "For us, Crimea is Ukraine, Donbas is Ukraine, and it'll remain so." This statement is a significant shift in Serbia's position since Putin's invasion of Ukraine almost 11 months ago. Vučić clarified that it would be wrong to assume that Serbia fully endorses the Russia's actions, stating "we are not always jubilant about some of their stances. We have a traditionally good relationship, but it doesn't mean that we support every single decision or most of the decisions that are coming from the Kremlin."^[64]

Russia has backed Serbia's position regardingKosovo. Vladimir Putin said that any support for Kosovo's unilateral declaration is immoral andillegal.^[65] He described the recognition of Kosovo's unilaterally declared independence by several major world powers as "a terribleprecedent" that "breaks up the entire system of international relations" that have taken "centuries to evolve", and "undoubtedly, it may entail a whole chain of unpredictable consequences to other regions in the world" that will come back to hit the West "in the face".^[66] In 2008, Russian PresidentDmitry Medvedev stated in a major foreign policy speech "For the EU, Kosovo is almost whatIraq is to the United States.... This is the latest example of the undermining of international law".^[67]Russian ambassador to Serbia Aleksandr Konuzin told in 2009 interview to Belgrade daily that "Russia's stand is rather simple — we are ready to back whatever position Serbia takes with regards to Kosovo."^[68]

In 2014, Russia used Kosovo's declaration of independence as a justification for recognizing theindependence of Crimea, citing the so-calledKosovo independence precedent; Crimea wasannexed by Russia just a week later.^[69][70] Russia'srecognition and subsequentannexation ofDonetsk andLuhansk by Putin's government were also done under the pretext of Kosovo precedent.^[71][72]

After the start of Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Serbian government reaffirmed its respect for Ukraine's territorial integrity.^[73] Serbia voted in favour of UN General Assembly resolutions condemning Russia's illegal attempt to annex four regions of Ukraine.^[74]

Since the beginning of war, significant numbers of Serbian citizens (and ethnicSerbs from neighboring countries) took up arms to fight against Ukraine, which prompted the Serbian government to pass a law prohibiting its citizens from taking part in hostilities on foreign soil.^[75] In 2019 the Ukrainian Embassy in Serbia estimated that around 300 Serbian nationals were fighting in Ukraine, all of them on the Russian side.^[76] After the 2022 invasion, many more Serbian nationals took up arms to fight on the Russian side.^[77][78]

Serbian public sentiment has been decidedly pro-Russian, with over 70% of Serbian citizens supporting Russia over Ukraine.^[79][80]Several rallies in support of Ukraine were held in Belgrade.^[81][82][83] Rallies in support of Russia's invasion have been held as well and those were more attended than pro-Ukraine ones.^{[84][85][86][87]} Numerous murals and graffiti supporting Russia's invasion of Ukraine appeared throughout Belgrade following the invasion.^[88]

As a result of the2022–2023 Pentagon document leaks, it was reported that the Serbian government had secretly agreed to supply arms and ammunition to Ukraine.^[89] The allegations were denied by Serbian officials at the time, but several months later, Serbian PresidentAleksandar Vučić told theFinancial Times: "Is it possible that it's happening? I have no doubts that it might happen. What is the alternative for us? Not to produce it? Not to sell it? [...] But I'm not a fool. I am aware that some of the arms might end up in Ukraine."^[90] At a multilateral summit meeting in 2024, Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy thanked Vučić for the humanitarian support the Serbian government had provided his country.^[91]

Trade between two countries reached almost$3 billion in 2023; Russia's merchandise exports to Serbia were about $1.7 billion; Serbian exports were standing at roughly $1.2 billion.^[92] More than two-thirds of Russian exports was said to be a natural gas, transported through theTurkStream pipeline and providing for some 90% of Serbian annual natural gas consumption.

Naftna Industrija Srbije, Serbian national oil and gas company, is majority owned by the Russian companyGazprom Neft, a subsidiary of the state-ownedGazprom.^[93] The company's refinery inPančevo (capacity of 4.8 million tonnes) is one of the most modern oil refineries in Europe; it also operates retial network of 334 filling stations in Serbia (74% of domestic market) and additional 36 stations inBosnia and Herzegovina. Gazprom is also majority owner ofHIP-Petrohemija, petrochemical complex in Pančevo. Russian retail chainSvetofor operates 24 stores in Serbia.

Ever since the Soviet period, theSerbian Armed Forces have been to certain degree dependent onSoviet/Russian technology.^[94] In recent years, procurement of Russian-made equipment included:Mi-35 attack helicopters,Pantsir-S1 air defense systems, as well as various missile acquisitions (R-77 air-to-airBVR missiles for MiG-29 fighter aircraft,Ataka air-to-surface missiles for Mi-35 helicopters, andKornet man-portableanti-tank guided missiles).^[95]

Serbian Armed Forces participation in the annualSlavic Brotherhood trilateral military drills (involvingRussian Armed Forces andArmed Forces of Belarus), initiated in 2015, has been a significant aspect of Serbia's military cooperation with Russia. They focused on special forces operations, counter-terrorism, peacekeeping, and tactical coordination, often involving live-fire exercises and advanced military hardware. Serbia's participation reflected its military neutrality policy, balancing cooperation with Russia against its much more extensive engagement with NATO (over 150 exercises since 2006).^[96] Serbia's withdrew from these exercises in 2021 amid growing pressure from theEuropean Union.^[97]

Cultural cooperation is vibrant, driven by active exchanges in arts, education, and media, all reinforced by mutual public affinity in both countries. The cultural bond is anchored in shared Slavic roots and the Orthodox Christian faith, with theSerbian Orthodox Church andRussian Orthodox Church playing significant roles. Russia's cultural influence in Serbia is stronger than vice versa, due to Russia's larger resources and media presence while Serbian cultural exports are limited by funding and scale.

The "Days of Russian Culture" in Belgrade, featuring concerts, film screenings, and art exhibitions were held in 2024 while "Days of Serbian Culture" were simultaneously held in Moscow, though on a smaller scale.^[98]

Russian literature, especially classics byFyodor Dostoevsky andLeo Tolstoy, remains popular in Serbia, with new translations published regularly. Serbian authors likeIvo Andrić are promoted in Russia through state-backed initiatives. TheBelgrade Book Fair frequently features Russian publishers, and Serbian publishers attend the Moscow International Book Fair, fostering literary exchange.

Russian classical musicians, ballet troupes (such asBolshoi Ballet), and choirs frequently perform in Serbia, particularly at events like theBelgrade Music Festival. Conversely, Serbian artists, such as folk ensembles, participate in Russian cultural festivals like the Moscow Slavic Bazaar. Art exchanges include exhibitions of Russian painters, such as 2023 exhibition at theNational Museum of Serbia that featured Russian avant-garde art, drawing significant local interest.

Joint film festivals, such as the Russian Film Festival in Belgrade, showcase Russian cinema, while Serbian films are screened in Russia (e.g., at the Moscow International Film Festival).^[99] The 2019 Serbian-Russian filmThe Balkan Line, depicting the 1999 Kosovo conflict, was a co-production that topped box office charts in both countries.^[100]

Domestic affiliates ofRT andSputnik have a significant pay-tv and online presence in Serbia.

TheRussian House – Russian Centre of Science and Culture in Belgrade, established in 1933, is a key hub for cultural exchange, offering Russian language courses (over 5,000 enrolled in language programs as of 2023), literature workshops, and cultural events.^[101]

Russia has funded cultural projects in Serbia, the most significant of which is the mosaic cladding of the interior of theChurch of Saint Sava in Belgrade, conducted between 2017 and 2020.^[102] Authors of the mosaics wereNikolay Mukhin and Yevgeniy Maksimov while the artists working on the mosaics were chosen from theMoscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture and the Repin Institute of Arts at theImperial Academy of Arts in Saint Petersburg.^{[103][104][105]}

• 
  Russian Orthodox Church of the Holy Trinity in Belgrade
• 
  The Russian House - Russian Centre of Science and Culture in Belgrade
• 
  Statue of the EmperorNicholas II in Belgrade
• 
  Russian World War I Military Cemetery in Belgrade
• 
  Soviet World War II Military Cemetery in Belgrade

According to 2022 Census there were 10,486Russians in Serbia, including both Serbian citizens of ethnic Russian descent and Russian-born people residing in Serbia.^[106] Since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022, more than 300,000 Russian nationals have entered Serbia of which some 53,000 settled in the country i.e. had been issued a residence permit.^[107][108]

There were two waves of Russian immigration to Serbia.

Following the October Revolution in 1917 and the subsequent Russian Civil War, a significant number of Russians, primarily those aligned with the anti-Bolshevik White movement, fled the newly established Soviet Union. This wave of emigration, often referred to as the "White Russian" exodus, saw over 1.5 million people leave Russia, with Serbia becoming a key destination due to its historical and cultural ties with Russia. By the end of 1920s, approximately 40,000 Russian refugees were living in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, with over two-thirds residing in the territory of present-day Serbia, particularly in Belgrade. The emigrants included former aristocrats, military officers, and intellectuals.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine, triggered another significant wave of Russian emigration, driven by political repression, economic sanctions, and fear of conscription following2022 Russian mobilization. Serbia emerged as a primary destination due to its visa-free policy for Russians, its refusal to impose sanctions on Russia, and affordable living conditions.^[109]

Russia and Serbia mutually abolished the requirement of obtaining an entry visa for its citizens in 2009.^[110] Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Serbia remained only European country, besides Belarus, that still has a visa-free policy with Russia.

• Russia has an embassy inBelgrade.
• Serbia has an embassy inMoscow.

• 
  Embassy of Russia in Belgrade
• 
  Embassy of Serbia in Moscow

• Foreign relations of Serbia
• Foreign relations of Russia
• Soviet Union–Yugoslavia relations

• Dimić, Ljubodrag (2011). "Yugoslav-Soviet Relations: The View of the Western Diplomats (1944–1946)".The Balkans in the Cold War: Balkan Federations, Cominform, Yugoslav-Soviet Conflict. Beograd: Institute for Balkan Studies. pp. 109–140.ISBN 978-8671790734.
• Raquel Montes Torralba (2014)."Belgrade at the crossroads: Serbian-Russian relations in light of the Ukraine crisis".ARI.63.Real Instituto Elcano.
• Trivanovitch, Vaso. "Serbia, Russia, and Austria during the Rule of Milan Obrenovich, 1868–78"Journal of Modern History (1931) 3#3 pp. 414–440online
• Nikolaevna, P.M. and Leonidovič, Č.A., 2017. Serbia and the Serbs in the Russian press: Stereotypes and images. Nasleđe, Kragujevac, 14(37–1), pp. 13–25.
• Černobrovkin, A.V., 2017. Russian-Serbian cooperation: Culturological aspect. Nasleđe, Kragujevac, 14(37–1), pp. 39–47.
• Đorđević, Marija (2009)."Часовник Лазара Србина". Belgrade: Politika.
• Ivanova, Ekaterina Vladimirovna, and Jovana Blažić Pejić. "Писма митрополита Михаила грофици АД Блудовој: Прилог проучавању руско-српских односа (1871–1874)." Мешовита грађа 35 (2014): 121–138.
• Leovac, Danko Lj. Србија и Русија за време друге владавине кнеза Михаила:(1860–1868). Diss. Универзитет у Београду, Филозофски факултет, 2014.

• Media related toRelations of Russia and Serbia at Wikimedia Commons
• Embassy of Russia in Belgrade
• Embassy of Serbia in Moscow
• Межгосударственные отношения России и Сербии

• Russia–Serbia relations
• Bilateral relations of Russia
• Bilateral relations of Serbia

• Webarchive template wayback links
• CS1 Russian-language sources (ru)
• CS1 French-language sources (fr)
• CS1 Ukrainian-language sources (uk)
• All articles with dead external links
• Articles with dead external links from December 2023
• Articles with permanently dead external links
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• All articles with unsourced statements
• Articles with unsourced statements from October 2023
• All articles lacking reliable references
• Articles lacking reliable references from October 2023
• CS1 Croatian-language sources (hr)
• CS1 Serbo-Croatian-language sources (sh)
• Commons category link from Wikidata