Every failed empire experiences its moment of humiliation. For Russians, that humiliation is wearing high heels and speaking into a microphone. Maria Zakharova, the spokesperson for Russian diplomacy, no longer represents the country but its frustration. Every sentence she utters is the equivalent of a cannon shot – noisy, empty, and predictable.
This time, her target was Aleksandar Vučić and Serbia. Zakharova “wondered” whether Serbia has one president or more, alluding to Vučić’s statements about the export of Serbian ammunition to Ukraine. That is not a question; it is a threat – the tone in which the emperor asks the governor why he does not bow low enough.
In Russian diplomacy, they call it a fraternal council. In any normal state, it is called humiliation.
When Zakharova speaks of “brotherly love,” Serbia remembers the numbers. Serbia knows that forced brotherhood is not brotherhood but slavery. And that people cannot live on memories of alliances that were always cheap for Russia but costly for Serbia.
Let us not go into distant history, just a couple of decades back. Russia supported sanctions against Serbia in the 1990s. It voted for every Security Council resolution punishing us.
When it was supposed to show solidarity in 1999, the Russian contingent from Kosovo was withdrawn before it even arrived – because Moscow did not want to pay the costs of its presence there. Such “brotherly love” lasts only while it is free.
This is what Zakharova will never say: Russia is not defending Serbia, but only its own interests. Russia needs Serbia as a media toponym in every statement: “Serb brothers,” “Orthodox solidarity,” “historical mission.” Behind these words is not love, but the need for manipulation.
In Russian propaganda, Serbia is always a chess piece – never a partner. It is no coincidence that the Kremlin’s spokesperson resembles a propaganda commissar more than a diplomat.
She holds a microphone in one hand and a megaphone in the other. In every statement, instead of reason, there is the echo of artillery.
Her logic is the logic of siege: the world is against Russia, so everyone must choose a side. In this narrative, Serbia must be “with them,” because if it is not, it will be against them. This is a political prop from the nineteenth century that Moscow has never stopped using.
Today, Serbia is also bearing the consequences of these decisions in the energy sector. Oil company NIS, in which Russia’s Gazprom still holds a majority stake, has become a hostage to political messages from Moscow. Gazprom manages NIS like an embassy, not as an energy partner.
When the West and the United States impose sanctions, the consequences are not suffered by Putin or the Russian oligarchs, but by the citizens of Serbia. NIS has become a symbol of Russian blackmail, not cooperation.
While Belgrade tries to find a way to buy the Russian share, obstacles come from Moscow. The Kremlin knows that as long as it holds its share in NIS, it has leverage over Serbia. And yes, NIS today is a real symbol of that “brotherhood” – a company managed by Gazprom as a bank of influence, not as an energy partner.
When NIS came under sanctions because of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, Russia did not remember that NIS workers were Serbs and that they would lose their jobs, or that the citizens of Serbia would be left without fuel and energy sources.
What matters to them is that Belgrade remains blackmailed, that Serbia cannot breathe without Russian approval. This is not a partnership – it is a chess game in which Serbia always plays with white but is never allowed to make a move.
Unlike Russia, Serbia cannot gamble with its own future; it needs peace, stability, and economic strength – not a stage for war.
Zakharova, Lavrov, and Putin, however, do not see Serbia as a country but as an alibi. When they need to justify Russia’s aggression, they refer to Kosovo. When they need to justify a crime, they refer to Srebrenica. Putin has repeatedly said that “he will not allow Srebrenica in Donbas.” Thus, they have turned the Serbian tragedy into a justification for their own crimes. They look at others’ wounds to hide their own.
Russia is not defending anyone today. It simply recycles others’ misfortunes into political slogans. That is why, when they swear to “Orthodox brotherhood” in Moscow, it is worth asking: where was that brotherhood when the Serbs were under sanctions that Russia voted for?
When Zakharova says that “Serbia must be careful,” she means “Serbia must listen.” Today, Russia offers Serbia nothing but blackmail and myths. In Moscow, they still believe that history repeats itself if it is told enough times. But Serbia has learned that what Russia calls brotherhood usually begins with an aggressive embrace and ends with chains.
If Maria Zakharova wants to talk about “treason,” let her start with her own country: with how the Kremlin turned a former world power into an isolated economy dependent on China; with the fact that today, Russian supermarkets lack basic products, and in schools, children are told that NATO is to blame for the lack of chocolate. If she wants to teach moral lessons, let her teach them in her own country, because Serbia is not seeking them.
In the end, Serbia owes Russia nothing. It owes no explanation, no gratitude, and certainly no loyalty.
Vučić responded to Zakharova’s statement as he should – by remaining silent. This is not weakness; it is strategy. Those who shout to conceal their own weakness are not worth engaging – they drown themselves in their own noise.
Zakharova and her superiors in the Kremlin must understand that Serbia is no longer anyone’s testing ground. There is no “Russian governorate” they can manage using emotions and threats. Today, Serbia knows its value: stability, a strong economy, and partnerships based on respect. Those who still invoke “brotherhood” should consider how many allies and “brothers” they have lost since they began to “defend” them.
Zakharova will, of course, continue to preach. That is her job. The propaganda media in Moscow and Belgrade will report her every word as gospel. But Serbia must stand firm – speaking the language of interests, not emotions. In politics, there are no “brothers,” only partners.
Zakharova should know that Serbia has long measured friendship not by the amount of vodka, but by the amount of investment. Today, the Kremlin is trying to make Serbia a moral hostage – to drag it into its war against the world.
But Serbia cannot choose between truth and loyalty to lies. It simply has to choose itself. Anyone who allows Zakharova to define patriotism for them renounces their own dignity and acts against the interests of their country and people.