Vulin will hold talks with Putin amid strengthening Serbia-Russia ties

Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin is scheduled to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin this week, as confirmed by Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s foreign policy adviser. The meeting will take place during the ninth edition of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok.

On September 4, Putin will also meet with Han Zheng, Vice President of the People’s Republic of China, following his meeting with Vulin, according to a report by TASS, citing Ushakov.

Vulin, who previously served as director of the Serbian intelligence agency BIA, was sanctioned by the United States in July last year. The sanctions were imposed due to allegations of his involvement in illegal arms trafficking, drug smuggling and abuse of office. Vulin is known for his strong pro-Russian and anti-European stance. He recently visited Moscow, where he met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

His visit comes a few days after Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic denied having close ties with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and rejected suggestions that his country is a ‘Trojan horse’ for Moscow.

Speaking at the GLOBESEC security conference in Prague, Vucic said he had not met or spoken to Putin in more than two years since Russia invaded Ukraine. This also turned out to be untrue as Vucic and Putin had a brief conversation while in Beijing to attend the international forum on China’s “Belt and Road” initiative in October 2023.
“Yes, we traditionally have very good relations and we are not hiding it. And I am not ashamed of that with Russia. It has always been the case between the Serbs and the Russians, and we are the only country in Europe that has not imposed sanctions against Russia and as you can see, I’m not afraid to say it openly,” he said.

Vulin’s visit to Vladivostok, Russia denies these statements of Vucic as Serbia and Russia continue to strengthen their ties./TheGeopost/