Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić announced this Tuesday the achievement of a strategic agreement with Israel to create a joint defense company.
This ambitious project aims to produce up to 80,000 drones within the next two years, combining advanced Israeli technology with Serbia's manufacturing infrastructure. Ynet.
According to Vučić, the partnership will be structured equally (50-50), guaranteeing Belgrade access to the latest military knowledge on unmanned aerial vehicles, including loitering munitions.
“We can’t produce drones like Israel can, but I’m proud that we will do it together. This guarantees that we will have the best drones in the region,” Vučić told reporters, underlining that the goal is technological dominance in this sector within the Balkans.
The development comes after a period in which Serbia has significantly increased its munitions exports to Israel, even as many European countries have suspended military cooperation with Tel Aviv due to the war in the Middle East. Belgrade is seeking to become a regional hub for drone production, having announced plans last year to open a large production plant for intelligence and attack needs.
While Serbia strengthens ties, Italy has taken a different stance. Giorgia Meloni's government announced on Tuesday the suspension of the automatic renewal of the defense cooperation agreement with Israel.
However, Israeli officials said that Rome's move would have no practical implications for their security ties.
