Ukraine’s first lady makes her premier visit to Belgrade

BELGRADE: Ukraine’s first lady Olena Zelenska arrived in Belgrade on Sunday, the first visit by a top Ukrainian dignitary to Serbia since Russia’s invasion in 2022 and a signal of the Balkan country’s swing away from Moscow, its traditional ally.

Flanked by her Serbian counterpart Tamara Vucic and Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba, also on his first visit to Belgrade, Zelenska toured the city and its medieval Kalemegdan fortress, the Tanjug news agency reported.

She also attended the signing of an agreement on cooperation between universities in Belgrade and Kyiv, the report said.

Pro-Russian sentiment runs high in Serbia on the back of traditional historical, religious, political and military ties.

Serbia’s populist President Aleksandar Vucic is trying to strike a balance between country’s candidacy for membership of the European Union and ties with Russia and China, a major trade partner and investor.