The founding meeting of the local branch of the Russian Historical Society was held in the Serbian capital Belgrade on 26 October. It was headed by former Serbian intelligence chief Aleksandar Vulin, the Balkan service of Radio Liberty reported.
He said that the Russian Historical Society is a gathering place for all those who see Serbia as a state that “will fight without any reservations for the peaceful creation of Serbian peace” and for being a true ally of Russia and China.
The pro-Russian socialist leader and former head of Serbian intelligence also said that abandoning Russia is abandoning Serbia and that every generation of the Serbian people “has become accustomed to expecting that their physical survival depends on Russia.”
Vulin is known for his pro-Russian views, and in January 2024, he received an award from Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Federal Security Service. The State Department placed him on the sanctions list in mid-2023 because of ties to Russia and likely corruption when he was still head of the Security and Information Agency.
The Russian organisation is headed by Sergei Naryshkin, director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service. Vulin and Naryshkin have met several times since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dacic and Serbian Orthodox Patriarch Porfiry attended the Constituent Assembly with him.