Serbia denies entry to Russian-Israeli journalist labeled a “foreign agent” by Moscow

The Russian-Israeli journalist Roman Perl, whom Moscow described as a “foreign agent”, was denied entry to Serbia due to alleged security risks. He announced this himself via video. Roman Perl said he was on a private visit when he landed at Belgrade airport on Saturday. He was kept on hold for hours before finally being banned from entering the country, he said in the video published by Serbian-language broadcaster VOA.

“They gave me a letter saying there were security risks if I was on Serbian territory,” said Perl, who spoke in English but had his comments translated into Serbian. The reporter said he had only come to visit a friend.

Moscow labeled Perl a “foreign agent” in October 2021, relying on a law condemned by the international community. The controversial law allows the authorities to take action against organizations, media and other individuals who are considered “foreign agents”. It was passed in 2012 and has since been tightened several times. It was this legislation that prompted Perl to move to Israel.

Commenting on the ban, he said that “in certain cases it was possible for the Russian authorities to convince the Serbs to do something that the Russian side considered necessary”. But, he added, the main reason for the ban was his arrest last year in Belgrade while he was working on a documentary about Serbia and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“One of the interviewees unfurled a Ukrainian flag near the Russian embassy,” he said. “Then the members of the gendarmerie approached us and told us that the embassy had called them to remove us from the area.”

Following this incident, Perl was detained at a police station for several hours before being released without charge. He is currently involved in a project with Voice of America and Radio Free Europe called “Current Time”. When asked by the AFP news agency, the Serbian Interior Ministry did not provide any information on the reasons for the ban. Serbia, which aspires to join the European Union and is almost entirely dependent on Russian gas, refuses to impose sanctions on Moscow./TheGeopost/