Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić announced he would be unable to accept Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invitation to attend the upcoming BRICS summit in Russia next month, according to media reports.
“We have important guests from abroad at that time,” Vučić said, as quoted by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Balkan service.
The BRICS summit will take place in Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan, from October 22-24. BRICS, originally established in 2009 by Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, seeks to unite the world’s major emerging economies and act as a political and economic counterbalance to wealthier Western nations.
Earlier this year, the group expanded to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates.
On Wednesday, Putin expressed hope that Vučić would attend the summit, with Vučić confirming that he received the invitation “10-12 days ago” and had been considering it.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, the European Union cautioned Serbia that maintaining close ties with Russia could jeopardize its aspirations to join the EU, according to Moscow Times.
The warning followed Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin’s remarks during his meeting with Putin at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, where Vulin described Serbia as an “ally of Russia.”
Despite its condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at the United Nations, Serbia has refused to impose sanctions on Moscow and remains heavily reliant on Russian gas, reflecting the historical ties between Belgrade and Moscow.
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