Vucic Vows Serbia's Adherence To Military Neutrality Amid Allegations Of Russia's Spying

BELGRADE (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd November, 2019) Serbia will remain a militarily neutral country and will not change its policy on Russia, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday amid allegations of Russian espionage activity in Serbia.

On Wednesday, Serbian tabloid newspaper Blic published an article claiming that a former deputy military attache at the Russian Embassy in Serbia, Georgiy Kleban, attempted to recruit a senior Serbian officer for espionage. Serbian Defense Minister Aleksandar Vulin said the country's authorities would study and verify the reports.

"As for us, we are not going to change our policy in relation to Russia. We consider it a brotherly nation and we will uphold the best of cooperation in all spheres. In addition to protecting and maintaining out soil in this sense, meaning intelligence, as well. Serbia is not going to pivot its policy to NATO, it [Serbia] does not want to join neither NATO, nor the Collective Security Treaty Organization, nor any third military bloc - I reiterate it distinctly and clearly," Vucic said in a nationwide address.

Blic and other Serbian media published images and video footage of the suspected spy encounter where the two men can be seen exchanging some packages and the Serbian official pulling an envelope filled with money from his pocket. Earlier in the day, spokesperson of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova said that Moscow will comment on the matter only when the footage is probed for authenticity and studied in more detail to determine whom exactly it features.