President Volodymyr Zelensky’s first official visit to Serbia puts Kyiv inside what has historically been one of Moscow’s most important political strongholds in southeastern Europe. It comes at a moment when Serbia’s relationship with Russia is becoming increasingly difficult to reconcile with its economic and strategic interests. Zelensky arrived in Belgrade on Friday, Aug. 7, 2026, for talks with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and Prime Minister Đuro Macut, focusing on economic cooperation, European integration and security.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. “We will be speaking about expanding economic ties between our countries, relations with the European Union, and other things that can work for our peoples, as well as security issues,” Zelensky said. It is the first time Zelensky has visited Serbia since becoming president in 2019. The trip is likely to further complicate Belgrade’s relations with Moscow, Serbia’s traditional ally and main supplier of natural gas. For Kyiv, however, the strategic symbolism is difficult to miss. A senior Ukrainian official told AFP ahead of the visit that Kyiv’s objective was explicitly to “pull the Serbs away from Russia’s side.” That does not mean Serbia is about to abandon Moscow. Vučić made clear before Zelensky arrived that Belgrade still has no intention of joining Western sanctions against Russia.