Political relations
Bilateral relations between the Republic of Serbia and the Russian Federation are based on a strategic partnership based on a deep mutual feeling of friendship, centuries-old history of relations and the tradition of linguistic, spiritual and cultural closeness of the fraternal peoples of the two countries. The dynamics of contacts at the highest level between officials of the two countries is intense. Official visit of the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin to Belgrade was realized on 19 January 2019. President of the Republic of Serbia A. Vucic visited Sochi on 24-25 November 2021. Previously, he visited Moscow on 23-24 June 2020, when he participated in the Victory Day Parade Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia A. Brnabic visited Moscow on 10 December 2021.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov visited Belgrade on 15 December 15 2020. The First Vice President of the Government and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ivica Dačić paid a visit to Moscow on 20 December 2019.
The basis of Serbian-Russian relations was laid in 1191, when Rastko Nemanjić received monasticism in the Russian monastery of St. Panteleimon on the Holy Mountain. Serbian-Russian relations flourished during the reign of Tsar Peter the Great. The Russian diplomat of Serbian origin, Count Sava Vladislavić Raguzinski, who served in the court of Tsar Peter the Great, is credited with concluding the 1728 Bjurin-Kjahtan agreement on the demarcation of Russia and China. In the first half of the 18th century, a large number of Serbs began to settle in Russia, especially in the period from 1751-1752. The Russian Empress Jelisaveta Petrovna made the decision to form the Autonomous Region of New Serbia in the north-western part of Zaporozhye, and in 1753 the area of Slavic Serbia between the rivers Bakhmut and Luhan. These Serbian areas had autonomy until 1764.
Economic relations
Relations are successfully developing in all areas, especially in trade, investment, energy, agriculture, military and military-technical, scientific-technical and cultural areas, as well as in the field of railway infrastructure construction. Despite the highly developed economic cooperation, there is mutual interest and opportunities for its further strengthening.
In 2021, the total trade exchange of the Republic Serbia and the Russian Federation amounted to 2.802 billion dollars (2,374 billion euros), of which exports of the Republic of Serbia amounted to 977 million dollars (840 million euros), and imports amounted to 1.806 billion dollars (1,534 billion euros). In 2020, the total trade exchange of the Republic Serbia and the Russian Federation amounted to 2.477 billion dollars (2.188 billion euros), of which our exports amounted to 911 million dollars (800 million euros), and imports from the Russian Federation amounted to 1.566 billion dollars (1.388 billion euros).
The Republic of Serbia exports to the Russian Federation the following: apples, rubber, tights, soy, paper and cardboard, medicines, cleaning products, strawberries, young cheese, circulating pumps. It imports from the Russian Federation: oil, natural gas, mineral or chemical fertilizers, urea, tobacco, cigarettes, monoammonium phosphate, carbon, etc.
Russian capital accounts for a large share in the Republic of Serbia. The most important investors are Gazpromneft with privatization and investments in NIS and Lukoil in Beopetrol, and Sberbank in banking.
Bilateral agreements
Serbia and the Russian Federation have a very developed contractual and legal base of bilateral relations, which provides legal regulation of important areas of cooperation.
The Declaration on Strategic Partnership between the Republic of Serbia and the Russian Federation, signed on 24 May 2013 in Sochi, which gave additional quality to bilateral relations, as well as the following agreements:
- Agreement on Stimulation and Mutual Protection of Investments;
- Double Taxation Agreement in respect of income and property taxes;
- Social Security Agreement
- Free Trade Agreement between the Republic of Serbia, on the one part, and the Eurasian Economic Union and its member states, on the other.
The plan is to sign a number of interstate agreements in the coming period.
Contact information
Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in Moscow http://www.moskva.mfa.gov.rs
Embassy of the Russian Federation in Belgrade https://serbia.mid.ru
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia, Department for Russia and Eurasia, tel. 00 381 (0) 11 30 68 349, e-mail: orev@mfa.rs