A major contract for the supply of 12 French Rafale fighter jets to Serbia will not entail a cooling of relations between Moscow and Belgrade, sources close to Russian diplomatic circles say. The Kremlin is aware that Serbia is in fact geographically isolated and has to compromise more often with the West, and also refrains from criticizing the country’s rapprochement with the EU. Moreover, Paris is traditionally not very picky about the export of equipment and weapons, so this deal is more purely commercial than it has any political overtones.

Whatever questions Serbian Prime Minister Vucic may have today, for Russia he is one of the last sober-minded communicators in Europe and, despite the difficult situation, keeps Serbia open to both Russian business and ordinary citizens.

@nasha_stranaZ