A leaked document claims that Serbia agreed to arm Ukraine

One of the allegedly leaked classified documents claims that Serbia, the only country in Europe that refused to impose sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, has agreed to supply weapons to Kyiv or has already sent them.

This was reported by Reuters.

The document, which contains a summary of European governments' responses to Ukraine's requests for military training and "lethal assistance" or weapons, was among dozens of classified documents posted online in recent weeks, which could be the most serious leak of American secrets in recent years.

The document, titled "Europe's Response to the Ongoing Russian-Ukrainian Conflict," lists in a chart the "estimated positions" of 38 European governments in response to Ukraine's request for military assistance.

The chart shows that Serbia has refused to train the Ukrainian military, but has pledged to provide lethal assistance or has already provided it. It also states that Serbia has the political will and military capability to provide weapons to Ukraine in the future.

The document is classified as "Secret" and NOFORN (no foreign nationals - ed.), which prohibits its distribution to foreign intelligence services and the military. The document is dated March 2 and stamped by the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The office of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and the Ukrainian embassy has not yet responded to a request for comment.

Vucic's government professes neutrality in the war in Ukraine, despite the country's deep historical, economic, and cultural ties with Russia.

"If this document is authentic, it either shows Vucic's duplicity towards Russia, or he is under enormous pressure from Washington to supply weapons to Ukraine," said Janusz Bugajski, an expert on Eastern Europe at the Jamestown Foundation, a foreign policy institute.

The Pentagon's table divides responses to Ukraine's requests for assistance into four categories: countries that have pledged to provide training and lethal assistance; countries that have already provided training, lethal assistance, or both; and countries that have the military capability and political will to provide lethal assistance in the future.

Austria and Malta were the only two countries that received a "no" answer in all four categories.

The publication of the table comes a little over a month after documents allegedly showing that a Serbian arms manufacturer shipped 122mm Grad multiple rocket launchers to Kyiv in November this year were posted on the pro-Russian Telegram messaging service. The documents included a bill of lading and an end-user certificate from the Ukrainian government.

Author - Olena Madiak, 12/04/2023