Serbia, a small Russia in the Balkans

Deputy Minister in Defence Resign, Burim Ramadani, tells Radio Free Europe that expansion NATO in the Balkans has offered and influenced regional stability and security in important form, creating confidence that the Balkans will have lasting peace when all Western Balkan states will be part of NATO.

On the other hand, as he says, Serbia, although it has declared military neutrality, has obviously broken that neutrality by armed with equipment, according to the Russian standard.

The “seems clear that Serbia, with direction, but also with arming, is turning into a small Russian in the Balkans and obviously that is a security concern in the entire Balkan region and not just for the separate states. As such, it is an extremely bad signal to convey the threatening logic to neighbouring states, respectively, lack of good neighbourly investment”, Ramadani said.

Politologist Ramush Tahiri, speaking of Radio Free Europe, estimates that Serbia is arming itself with weapons coming mainly from Russia, which, according to him, is frightening to countries in the region. As he says, these weapons make Serbia dependent on Russian arms contingents and spare parts. However, all of this, as Tahiri estimates, is the continuation of a Serbian mythology that is exploiting the leadership of this state as a kind of population and tradition that Serbs are a military people, in a way promoting hostility with other peoples.

“Armation, the large number of soldiers and reserveers in Serbia, keeps in a military form the organisation of society, which is traditional and also keeps this garrison in power, which does not submit to election procedures and democratic re-elections. It keeps in a psychosis of permanent danger to Serbia and the Serbian people, as well as to some kind of tension or hostility, from time to time, politics, through statements, do it with Albanians, with Bosnia, especially with Croats, and sometimes it happens to Bulgarians”, Tahiri stressed.

Tahiri has added that Serbia is spending a lot of money on weapons from Russia, and this puts it in an awkward position because it forces it in everyday use of risk rhetoric and defence arming. Meanwhile, according to him, the air weapons of this type that Serbia has purchased is offensive.

Meanwhile, deputy minister in resignation, Ramadani, says Serbia is surrounded by neighbouring countries, which are part of NATO or have the presence of this alliance. In view of this fact, he issues the question, what does Serbia need arming from Russia?

What's this arming from Russia need, and against whom? Because, Serbia's neighbours, are all, whether NATO member or NATO presence, in this case we are talking about Kosovo, which has NATO presence. This is a powerful argument that makes Serbia clear that small Russia, as an ally, as geographic and political space, in which Russia manages the security aspect. Let's not forget that many of these devices are used, they are old Russian equipment, but they serve, primarily for information collections, for intelligence”, Ramadani said.

However, politicologist Tahiri stresses that Russia does not jeopardise its national interest because of Serbia.

Russia is superpower and plays the global political and geostrategic game. It does not endanger its national interest in Serbia or in Serbia's interests. Russia is not giving Serbia the last weapon, even because of uncertainty that it can go into other hands. This regime does not mean that it will always be stable for the Russians. But, Serbia is taking advantage, because it is considering that its geopolitical regulation towards neighbours, especially against Kosovo and Bosnia, has not ended”, Tahiri praised.

He has added that Serbia is blackmailing the West, through co-operation with Russia, considering that all countries around it are in NATO or with the presence of this military alliance. All this, according to him, is a policy of Serbia's leadership, of President Alaksander Vuciq, Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic and Defence Minister Aleksandar Vulin, as well as of their parties, to keep the Serb people in their existing condition, until they arrange matters with Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The last contingent of military vehicles, 10 autobulds of the type BRD -2, which Russia, according to Serbian officials, thanks to the latter, was introduced two days ago. Earlier, Serbia has accepted six combat planes of its kind, MiG-29 from Russia.

During July, Romania, NATO member state, has prevented the delivery of 60 Russian tanks and other armed vehicles, via the Danube River to Serbia, due to international sanctions against Moscow. On 26 July, Romania's Foreign Ministry has declared it has failed to approve a permit for passage on the territory of this state, based on stops set in 2014.