As part of his visit to France Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vučić spoke with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron this week also discussed the procurement of Rafale fighter jets from the French French manufacturer Dassault for the Serbian air force. However, such a deal would come as quite a surprise.
According to Vučić, a total of twelve aircraft are involved and a corresponding contract could be concluded within the next few months; the price is likely to be around three billion euros. Such a deal would be remarkable in that Serbia traditionally relies on manufacturers from Eastern Europe for its procurements and, under Vučić’s leadership, the country has recently oriented its security and armaments policy even more away from the West towards Russia and China.
The Serbian Air Force is currently operating 17 old Soko J-22 Orao ground attack aircraft from domestic production as well as eleven MiG-29s from Russia and Belarus, some of which were only received in 2017. The army secures its airspace with the Chinese HQ-22 air defense system (FK-3 for export, comparable to the Russian S-300), Chinese CH-92A fighter drones were also recently procured and eleven Mi-24 fighter drones were recently added. recently added eleven Mi-24 combat helicopters from Cyprus. have been added.
In view of this and the presence of Russian and Chinese military (technical) personnel in Serbia required for the operation and servicing of the systems, several questions arise regarding the possible safe operation (Operational Security, OPSEC) of a Western high-value system such as the Rafale. Concerns in this regard are likely to come primarily from the operating nations Egypt, Greece, India, Indonesia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and the former Serbian war opponent Croatia. Zagreb is currently introducing twelve Rafales However, like part of the Greek fleet, these are second-hand aircraft from the French Air Force.
The same concerns would also apply with regard to weaponry. If, for example, MBDA’s Meteor air-to-air missile (BVR) were to become an issue, a key Western system would also be affected. However, it is of course possible that the procurement of Rafale fighter jets – following the recent purchase of H-145M helicopters from Airbus – will be seen as another important step towards reorienting the Serbian army more towards the West. In any case, Serbia would already be Dassault’s eighth Rafale export customer. At the end of 2023, Dassault reported deliveries and orders of 495 Rafáles to date, 261 of which went abroad.
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