Serbia terminated a number of contracts for the purchase of Russian weapons, which it had supplied the army with since Soviet times.. The chief of the general staff of the republic, Milan Moisilovich, announced this in an interview with Novosti.. According to him, the reason for this decision was sanctions against Moscow..

“When it comes to arms supplies from the Russian Federation, at the moment this is virtually impossible. We are trying to find a solution to the current situation through diplomatic channels.. We terminated a number of contracts, and postponed some in the hope that the situation in interstate relations at the global level will normalize,” the general said.

He noted that the Serbian army still has the opportunity to purchase spare parts for Soviet- and Russian-made equipment, since they are produced in many countries around the world under license. However, it is no longer possible to obtain new equipment from Russia.

In August 2024, Serbia decided to abandon the purchase of a new batch of Russian fighters, which had been discussed since 2021. Instead of Russian-made vehicles, Belgrade purchased 12 French Rafales for 2.7 billion euros, with which it plans to replace the aging fleet of Russian MiG-29s.

Milan Moisilovich noted that retraining pilots for new aircraft will be difficult, but doable. Moreover, Rafale meets all the requirements of a modern army.

But Serbia is also relying on its own weapons.

“Armored combat vehicles “Lazar” and “Milos”, kamikaze drones, artillery missile systems, unmanned aircraft, various small, lethal and anti-aircraft weapons will be supplied... Deliveries of modernized M-70 automatic rifles are also expected,” Mojsilovich said.

Interestingly, according to estimates by the Stockholm Peace Research Institute (SPIRI), Russian arms exports fell by 53% in 2019–2023 compared to the previous five-year period. As a result, Russia's share fell from second to third place in the list of the world's largest arms suppliers, and its share in the global market decreased to 11%.

The first place is still occupied by the United States, whose exports increased by 17%, and its share in the global arms market reached 42%. France came in second place, increasing exports by 47% over five years..

Let us recall that in the fall of 2024 in Russia, with incredible pathos, a presentation of a new line of the legendary Kalashnikov assault rifle took place.. However, military experts believe that this new model is significantly inferior to its predecessor..