Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said Belgrade provided military support to Israel following the October 7 Hamas attacks, despite criticism from some European capitals, as defense and trade ties between the two countries reached record levels.
In an exclusive interview with The Jerusalem Post, Vučić said Serbia responded within four days to an Israeli request for military assistance, bypassing a complex web of export procedures. “We collected everything within four days, and we did it,” Vučić said. “It has never been achieved before in this country.”
Serbia’s arms exports to Israel soared to €42.3 million in 2024, a thirtyfold increase over the previous year, according to data cited from Balkan Insight and Haaretz. “I am the only one in Europe today dealing in military ammunitions with Israel,” Vučić said, acknowledging criticism from some EU states.
Vučić, a former defense minister and a dominant figure in Balkan politics, said Serbia’s support for Israel goes beyond defense. “We will always appreciate, respect, and like the Jewish people and Israel,” he said.
Following the October 7 attacks, Israeli sports teams, including Maccabi Tel Aviv and Maccabi Haifa, relocated matches to Serbia due to security concerns. Vučić said no antisemitic incidents were recorded. “Not a single offense, not a single banner,” he said.
Vučić also revealed efforts to secure the release of Alon Ohel, a dual Israeli-Serbian citizen kidnapped by Hamas. “I asked some of my friends in the Middle East for help,” he said. “We have information that he is alive.”
Trade ties between Serbia and Israel have grown significantly. Bilateral trade reached a record $199.2 million in 2024, with exports from Serbia rising 75.2% and imports up 40.9%. In the first two months of 2025 alone, Serbian exports to Israel increased by nearly 200%.
Israeli investment in Serbia spans real estate, renewable energy, and high-tech, including projects by AFI Europe, BIG shopping centers, Enlight Energy, and Nofar Energy. Vučić said the two countries plan to negotiate a free trade agreement, announced during President Isaac Herzog’s 2024 visit to Belgrad
Vučić also praised Israel’s abstention in the 2024 UN General Assembly resolution marking July 11 as International Day of Reflection on the Srebrenica Genocide. “We were very thankful to Israel that they did not vote in favor,” he said.
Unlike parts of Europe, Vučić said antisemitism is virtually absent in Serbia. He pointed to legislative steps such as a 2016 law on heirless Jewish property and the establishment of the Staro Sajmište Holocaust memorial site.
In 2020, a yellow Jewish flag flew atop the presidential palace for International Holocaust Remembrance Day — the only flag allowed beside those of Serbia and the EU. “No football, LGBT, or other flags,” Vučić said. “Only the Jewish flag.”
The president said Serbia’s alignment with Israel is part of a long-standing policy. “This isn’t about current politics,” Vučić said. “It is our politics of all times.”