The EU has warned Serbia that maintaining strong ties with Moscow is "incompatible" with its quest to join the bloc, AFP reported.
The warning was issued by EU foreign affairs spokesman Peter Stano after Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Vladivostok on September 4.
"Maintaining or even strengthening ties with Russia during its illegal aggression against the Ukrainian people is not compatible with EU values and is not compatible with the EU accession process," Stano said.
During his meeting with the Russian president, Vulin described his country as an "ally of Russia."
Serbia received EU candidate status in 2012 and has been on the waiting list for membership ever since.
"As part of the accession process, countries are committed to aligning their foreign policy with that of the EU," Stano said.
"Therefore, we expect Serbia to refrain from strengthening ties and contacts with Russia," he added.
The Balkan country has historically close ties with Moscow and is almost entirely dependent on Russian gas.
Belgrade condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine at the United Nations, but refused to impose sanctions on the Kremlin.
"Serbia will never become a member of NATO, it will never impose sanctions on the Russian Federation and it will never allow anti-Russian actions to be carried out from its territory," Vulin said in comments broadcast by Russian television. | BGNES
