Serbia has bought an FK-3 missile defense system from China, comprising a new generation of medium-range, radar-guided surface-to-air missiles. The purchase comes after the delivery of Chinese-made CH-92A armed reconnaissance drones plus missiles to the Balkan country last month, which marked Beijing’s first arms deal with a European nation. The transaction was recorded in state-run arms company Jugoimport SDPR’s annual report, which was submitted to the state Business Registers Agency last week.
Serbian officials have said that the newly acquired equipment will help the country keep up with modern warfare capabilities which it previously lacked, and have expressed interest in buying more of the relatively low-cost weapons. The sales reflect Belgrade’s deepening relationship with Beijing, which has invested billions of euros in the Balkan country, mainly in soft loans, infrastructure, and energy projects. China sees Serbia as part of its One Belt, One Road initiative, which is aimed at opening new foreign trade links for Chinese companies. Experts claim that the western Balkans’ largest economy is at the center of Beijing’s “hub and spoke” strategy, which, as a candidate country for the EU, serves as a “strategic anchor for China in the EU’s semi-periphery, whereby it can invest heavily without EU regulatory burdens and showcase its technology and infrastructure projects to neighboring states”.
Relations between the two nations have drawn closer during the coronavirus pandemic, with China sending medical aid and doctors to Serbia in March to help the country tackle the health crisis, after the EU’s initial unwillingness to provide any meaningful support. Over the weekend, a second Chinese COVID-19 testing lab was inaugurated in the southern town of Niš, as the country struggles with the increasing rate of infections. Previously, Serbian President Aleksander Vucic has referred to an “iron friendship” with Beijing, but has also said Serbia would not choose between China; the EU, its main trading partner; or Russia, a natural Slavic and Orthodox Christian ally.
However, China has become a visible country in Serbia’s foreign policy in recent months, with Vucic openly supporting China on sensitive issues like its actions in Hong Kong, and Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic becoming the first minister to visit the country during the outbreak.