BELGRADE (Reuters) -The European Union has invited Serbia to join the bloc’s communal gas-buying initiative, EU Commission head Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday, as it seeks to reduce the Balkan country’s reliance on fossil fuels from Russia.
The EU launched a joint gas-buying platform in 2023 to give participants more leverage to achieve better deals after Russia slashed its gas deliveries to Europe in 2022, driving European energy prices to record highs.
The bloc wants to phase out Russian oil and gas altogether by January 2028 to deprive the Kremlin of revenues that could be used to fund its war in Ukraine.
The EU wants Serbia – a candidate for EU membership but with deep cultural and political ties to Russia – to align with Europe on energy policy. Serbia currently receives around 80% of its natural gas from Russia.
“We are connecting Serbia with the EU energy market and that is a real guarantee that Serbian families will be safe … through the winter,” von der Leyen said after meeting Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucic in Belgrade.
Von der Leyen also said Serbia should harmonise its foreign policy with the EU, including by imposing sanctions on Russia, and to start immediate work on reforms needed for joining the bloc.
It is not clear if Serbia has taken part in the EU initiative yet. In June, the energy ministry said it was working to integrate its gas and power markets with those of the EU by the end of 2027.
Von der Leyen’s comments come days after the U.S. imposed sanctions on Serbia’s Russian-owned NIS oil company, prompting neighbouring Croatia to cut crude supplies and raising concerns that the country’s sole refinery may halt operations within weeks.
Vucic said Serbia wants to diversify its energy supplies and build gas pipelines to neighbouring North Macedonia and Romania.
He said the country has secured enough oil and gas for now. But longer-term risks to supply remain.
“The winter will not be easy for us,” he said.
(Reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
