Zelensky begins first official visit to Serbia, says 'Ukraine is always ready to work constructively'
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President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in Belgrade on Aug. 7, marking his first official visit to the country.
The trip is seen as symbolic, as Serbia has traditionally maintained close ties with Russia.
"We will discuss expanding economic ties between our countries, relations with the European Union, other areas that can benefit our nations, and security issues," Zelensky wrote following his arrival.
"Ukraine is always ready to work constructively, for mutual benefit, and on the basis of mutual respect," the president added.
The two-day trip will include meetings with both Vucic and Serbian Prime Minister Duro Macut. Late in the evening on Aug. 7, Zelensky reported that his discussions with Vucic had begun.
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Serbia has sought to strike a careful diplomatic balance between Moscow and the West. Russia has historically been one of Serbia's key diplomatic allies, and Serbia relied heavily on Russia for natural gas.
According to reports, Serbia has also indirectly supplied arms to Ukraine, although Vucic publicly denied it in May 2025.
At the time, Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service, the SVR, accused Serbia's defense industry of "trying to shoot Russia in the back."
Vucic made his first official trip to Ukraine in June 2025 as part of the Ukraine-Southeast Europe summit in Odesa.
Unlike the other participants at the summit, Vucic did not sign a joint declaration that denounced Russia's illegal aggression, called for a full withdrawal of Russian forces from Ukraine, and reaffirmed support for Ukraine's territorial integrity.
