Serbia’s president Aleksandar Vučić has confirmed plans for joint drone production with Israel, responding to a recent investigation into cooperation between Serbia’s defence industry and Israeli company Elbit Systems.
Vučić said he was “proud of the partnership” and welcomed the development of joint military production. “We don’t know how to make drones like Israel does,” adding
We will do it together, it will be 50-50% and that shows we will have the best drones in this part of the world.
The president added that Serbia aims to expand arms exports and strengthen defence cooperation with Israel. Responding to criticism from investigative media outlets, he mocked their reporting on Serbian arms exports.
The comments follow reporting on a planned UAV manufacturing project involving Elbit Systems and Serbia’s state-owned arms exporter SDPR, including the production of short- and long-range drones. Earlier agreements between the two sides already include major arms deals and technology transfers.
Elbit Systems has previously signed contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars with Serbia, and further deals were reported for broader military equipment deliveries.
The announcement comes after Vučić’s political bloc secured strong results in recent local elections, with the Serbian Progressive Party–led coalition winning all ten municipalities where votes were held, alongside its alliance with the Socialist Party of Serbia.
