Serbia is expected to receive six Russian Mikoyan MiG-29 multirole
fighters and armored vehicles at a huge discount, totaling approximately
$80 million, Defense analyst Miroslav Lazanski told Sputnik, commenting
on unconfirmed reports that Moscow is ostensibly planning to transfer
weapons to Belgrade.
Lazanski said that this is a very good bargain for Serbia.
"These aircraft could cost more than $100 million, but we will receive
them for approximately $20 million if we take into account repair costs
as outlined by Russia.
In other words, Russia is planning to give us
approximately $80 million as a gift," the expert added.
A man walks past a poster with the reading “Ten years of NATO occupation
of Serbia”, and displaying images from 1999 NATO air campaign against
Serbia and Montenegro, in Belgrade on March 23, 2009.
© AFP 2016/ Andrej Isakovic
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On Friday, the Večernje novosti newspaper reported that Russia was
planning to transfer six Mikoyan MiG-29 multirole fighters and armored
vehicles to Serbia on condition that Belgrade pays only for their
repairs, citing an unnamed high-ranking source in the Serbian
leadership.
The issue was allegedly discussed behind closed doors during the 15th
intergovernmental committee meeting on the trade-economic and
technical-scientific cooperation in the Russian city of Suzdal.
The overall benefits of the agreement exceed financial considerations.
"Taking into account the state of the Serbian military, it would have
meant a lot to us if someone gave us two rifles and half of a cannon.
It's great that we will receive these MiGs since our pilots will
continue to use the aircraft of the same generation in training. As a
result, we will not lose experienced pilots. It would be hard to offset
such loses," Lazanski explained.
The defense analyst added that this amount of warplanes will be enough
to preserve a military balance with neighboring countries.
Russian servicemen in Serbia during the Slavic Brotherhood 2016 joint
airborne forces exercise of Russia, Serbia and Belarus
© Sputnik/ Evgeny Biyatov
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The intergovernmental committee is reported to have also discussed
purchasing the Buk missile system from Russia, but came to a conclusion
that it was too expensive.
"Buk is not cheap, but it is cheaper than the S-300. It would have
complemented our Kub and Neva surface-to-air missile systems. As a
result, Serbia would have created a comprehensive air defense system.
But I am not sure that we have enough resource to buy the Buk or that
Russia is willing to hand it over for free," the analyst noted.
Rescue workers evacuate mock flood victims as part of an international
field exercise organised and conducted by NATO's Euro-Atlantic Disaster
Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC) in Podgorica, Montenegro
© REUTERS/
Stevo Vasiljevic
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Lazanski explained that Serbia first wanted to purchase Russian weapons
three years ago.
Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic told Sputnik on Friday that the
reports on Russia's decision to deliver the MiG-29 fighter jets to
Serbia were a sign of "sincere cooperation, mutual trust and
friendship."
"Serbia has friends who do not shy away from helping the country," he
said. "Serbia has friends, who it does not hesitate to cooperate with.
Serbia wants to be friends with everyone in the world. It will not help
anyone hate anyone else. We will not attack anyone, but we will protect
our country and our people."
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