Vučić met with Putin; Russian President said: "I appreciate that you came to Moscow despite pressures" VIDEO

At the beginning of the meeting, the President of Russia greeted Vučić and the Serbian delegation and said that he highly appreciates that he came to Moscow for the parade marking the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Second World War, despite the pressure, even though they tried to convince him not to participate and despite all the logistical problems.

"Dear Mr. President, dear friend, allow me to warmly greet you in Moscow. We sincerely appreciate that you are with us on this important day and that you are personally participating in the festive events," Putin said to Vučić.

Putin pointed out that Russian and Serbian soldiers fought side by side against the Nazi invaders - Putin said and noted that he remembers the conversation with Vučić on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Belgrade.

"This is our joint holiday, our warriors fought side by side against the Nazi invaders, and I remember well in connection with this our telephone conversation on October 20, 2024, on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Belgrade from the German-fascist invaders. The Belgrade Offensive, the operation of the Soviet Army together with the units of the People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia, became one of the key events of the final stage of the Second World War. We know with how much respect the government and the people of Serbia treat to the memory of fallen warriors for the freedom of our countries," Putin said.

As he stated, the friendship of fraternal nations was formed in those cruel war years and it is the sure foundation of the strategic partnership between Russia and Serbia, which has a constructive and mutually beneficial character.

"We appreciate Serbia's independent and sovereign course in international affairs. The Russian-Serbian dialogue takes place consistently, so on March 7 we had a detailed telephone conversation in which we discussed the current issues of our cooperation. In February of this year, substantive negotiations were held in Moscow between the heads of foreign policy departments, and regular contacts are maintained between the relevant ministries, between the parliament," said the Russian president.

He says that Gazprom is a reliable supplier and responds to Serbia's requests and provides additional gas deliveries in addition to those stipulated in the contracts.

"Russia is still key in Serbia's energy security and provides 85 percent of the energy that Serbia needs. Gas supplies go through Turkey, Gazprom is not only a reliable supplier but also provides additional quantities that Serbia needs. We will consider all current issues of Russian-Serbian cooperation and see what we can do for the future," President Putin said at the beginning of the meeting.

The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, today expressed his gratitude to the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, for his enormous support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Serbia and pointed out that it is the common task of the two countries not to allow history to be revised.

At the beginning of the meeting with Putin in the Kremlin, Vučić thanked the President of Russia for his hospitality and once again congratulated him on the holiday, the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War.

"It is a very important day for us, for the Serbs. We are proud of the role of our people in the liberation of our country from the Nazi invaders and we are very grateful to the Red Army, the Soviet Army for playing a big role in that liberation," said Vučić, speaking in Russian.

Vučić thanked Vladimir Putin for his support in preserving the sovereignty of Serbia and added that he agrees that it is necessary to increase bilateral exchange between the two countries and that there is potential for this.

"We hope that we will be able to maintain the current conditions when it comes to the gas arrangement and maybe even improve them, if I may say so," said Vučić.

He pointed out that Russia and Serbia should not allow the revision of history and said that he hoped to see each other in Belgrade.

The meeting is also attended by the Russian head of diplomacy Sergei Lavrov and the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, the Russian Minister of Economy Maxim Reshetnikov, the director of Rosatom Alexei Likhachev, the director of the Russian investment fund Kirill Dmitriev - the main mediator in the negotiations between Putin and Trump.

Putin and Vučić briefly met yesterday in the Kremlin at a reception for world officials who arrived in Moscow to attend the Victory Day celebrations.

Earlier today, Vučić attended the military parade on Red Square in Moscow, which was organized on the occasion of Victory Day in the Second World War, and in which more than 11,500 soldiers of the Ministry of Defense of Russia and other security structures.