Covid-19: Serbia plays the vaccine diplomacy card in the Balkans
Vaccination at a health center in Niš, Serbia.
REUTERS - MARKO DJURICA
Text by: RFI Follow
3 min
Country at the top of statistics in Europe for vaccinations and revaccinations against Covid-19, Serbia is using its vaccine stocks to develop its bilateral relations in the Balkans, by providing assistance to some of its neighbors.
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From our correspondent in Belgrade,
Laurent Rouy
Not only have more than one million Serbs, or 15% of the population, been vaccinated, but Serbia, which has good relations with Russia and China, has managed to procure four different vaccines.
►Also read: Covid-19: Serbia, first country in Europe in number of vaccinations
The result is that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, who is aiming for regional leadership, is distributing vaccines to some neighboring countries.
North Macedonia, Montenegro and the Bosnian Serb entity were the first beneficiaries, and this week President Vucic himself brought 5,000 doses of the vaccine to Sarajevo at the same time as he launched the facilitate customs transit in the Balkans.
Vaccines offered
While future Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti has said he is not interested in Belgrade's vaccines, Kosovars who still have their old Serbian identity documents can get vaccinated in Serbia, including bus transport.
In some countries, the vaccines offered by Serbia are the only ones available.
Vucic has a nice game to criticize European slowness while strengthening the weight of his country in the Balkans.
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