Serbia must follow EU rules if it wishes to join bloc, Germany says after Chinese missile delivery reports

All EU accession candidates expected to align with bloc’s common foreign and security policy, German press office says

Unusual airlift sorties have raised concerns over Chinese military presence in Europe

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A PLA Air Force Y-20 transport plane comes in to land in Belgrade, Serbia, on Monday. Photo: AP

Published: 5:00pm, 13 Apr 2022Updated: 5:12pm, 13 Apr 2022

Germany said it expects Serbia to conform with EU foreign and security policy if it wishes to become a member of the bloc, days after People’s Liberation Army planes reportedly delivered Chinese missiles to the Balkan country.

“The German government expects all EU accession candidates to join the European Union’s Common Foreign and Security Policy and so to come increasingly closer to the EU,” the German federal press office said in an emailed statement on Wednesday.

The office also said it had taken note of the reports surrounding the airlifts, but did not elaborate.

Serbia has been a candidate to join the EU since 2012.

Data from flight tracking service Flightradar24 showed six of the PLA Air Force’s Y-20A heavy transport planes flew to Serbia on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

Neither Beijing nor Belgrade have confirmed whether the flights delivered the new FK-3 medium-range surface-to-air missile system purchased for the Serbian military in 2019. Chinese nationalist tabloid Global Times said it had confirmed the planes carried the FK-3 but did not cite a source.

Serbia, a close ally of Moscow, has refused to join EU sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine in February. Some member states have said this could compromise Serbia’s wish to join the currently 27-nation bloc.