Serbia Fast-Tracks Citizenship For Russians, Despite EU Concerns

RFE
11 Jun 2026, 19:55 GMT+10

Despite warnings from the EU, Serbias government has granted citizenship to four times as many Russian nationals as to all other foreign citizens combined this year -- including individuals under international sanctions, anRFE/RL investigation has found.

Serbia grants citizenship through an expedited national interest procedure -- a practice that could threaten the countrys visa-free access to the Schengen Area and Belgrade's EU accession prospects.

Among those who have benefited from this fast-track procedure is Valery Kazikayev, who has been under US sanctions since April 2023 over business links to Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov.

Fast-Tracked

Kazikayev, who became a Serbian citizen on January 16, was targeted by the US as part of its efforts to further disrupt imports of critical technologies used by Russia in its war against Ukraine. Usmanov, who is one of Russia's richest men with close ties to the Kremlin, was blacklisted by the US in March 2022.

According to the US Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control, Kazikayev serves as a senior manager or board member of metals and mining companies linked to Usmanov, including Metalloinvest and Udokan Copper.

In Serbia's Interests?

RFE/RLs analysis of publicly accessible government data shows that the Serbian government granted citizenship on the grounds of national interest to 44 Russian citizens in the first five months of 2026 alone. And, since the beginning of 2022, more than 300 Russians have received Serbian citizenship in this way.

It is possible that more Russians have received Serbian citizenship through the standard naturalization procedure, but the Interior Ministry did not respond to RFE/RLs request for information on the total number granted since 2022.

While Serbian authorities view the fast-tracking of Russian naturalizations as being in the countrys interest, the EU sees it as a potential security challenge.

How Many Russians Are In Serbia?

Thanks to the two countries' mutual visa-free travel, thousands of Russian citizens have passed through Serbia since the start of the war in 2022 and the introduction of sanctions against Moscow.

Some fled mobilization; others came to Serbia so they could continue doing business with Western countries.

According to the latest available data from the Serbian Interior Ministry -- obtained by RFE/RL through a freedom-of-information request -- as of January 2025, just over 48,000 Russian citizens had temporary residence, which is granted for up to three years depending on the purpose, such as employment or education.

By granting citizenship to sanctioned individuals, Serbia is endangering its own prospects of European integration and undermining the community it seeks to join, said Todorovic.

This suggests that there is Russian influence over parts of the political and security apparatus, which provides such services in the hope that they will go unnoticed -- or even with complete disregard for the potential political consequences, he said.

Todorovic said the non-paper is also a signal that the European Commission will closely monitor how Serbia conducts the citizenship process, how thorough its screening is, and whether applicants backgrounds are truly checked.

Selakovic of the National Convention on the EU says the growing number of citizenships granted to Russians, including sanctioned individuals, shows that Serbia lacks a clear foreign-policy orientation and is preserving its relations with Russia.

All of this is not in line with a country that wants to become an EU member, because the rules there are very strict and very clear, Selakovic said.

Serbia has not opened any new chapters in the EU accession process since December 2021, partly due to its failure to align with the EUs common foreign and security policy.

At the recent EU-Western Balkans summit in Tivat, Montenegro, Serbia was told it must choose between Russia and China on one side and the European Union on the other.

Speaking after the summit, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Serbia must decide where it belongs and that balancing between Russia, China, and Europe is unacceptable.

Merz also said European leaders had made this clear to Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

Jelena Jankovic and Iva Martinovic contributed to this report.

Serbia Fast-Tracks Citizenship For Russians, Despite EU Concerns