Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky is making an official visit to Serbia on Saturday, 8 August 2026. Serbian president Aleksandar Vučić will host the Ukrainian leader during this two-day stay, which marks a historic moment in the bilateral relations between the two countries. This is Zelensky’s first official visit to Serbia since he took office in 2019, and the first since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The visit is considered highly symbolic given the complex geopolitical background. Serbia traditionally maintains close ties with Russia, which has historically been one of its key diplomatic allies, and the country remains heavily dependent on Russian natural gas. Since the start of the conflict, Belgrade has attempted to balance its ties with Moscow and its relations with the West, a stance visible in Vučić’s attendance at the military parade in Moscow last year, while he did not attend this year’s Victory Day celebrations.
Despite these challenges, relations between the two countries in recent years have been based on a shared aspiration for membership in the European Union, with Belgrade and Kyiv mutually supporting each other’s European integration. A key element of bilateral relations is mutual support for territorial integrity and sovereignty. Serbia explicitly supports the territorial integrity of Ukraine, while Ukraine, which does not recognise the independence of Kosovo, supports the territorial integrity of Serbia.
According to earlier reports, a memorandum of understanding aimed at enhancing trade cooperation between the two countries could be signed during the visit. This document was due to be considered as early as May, when a Ukrainian delegation was expected to visit Belgrade, but the realisation was postponed. Relations had further normalised after Vučić made his first official visit to Ukraine in June 2025, where he attended the Ukraine–South East Europe summit in Odesa.
Diplomatic activity peaked on 15 July this year, when Vučić visited Kyiv as part of a delegation of European leaders marking Ukraine’s Independence Day. Alongside political topics, media reports have also mentioned allegations that Serbia was indirectly supplying weapons to Ukraine, claims which the Serbian president publicly denied in May 2025.
