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Serbia will buy 12 new Rafale fighter jets from France’s Dassault Aviation for a total of 2.7 billion euros, Reuters reported, citing Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic as announcing today.
Vucic said after a meeting with French Foreign Minister Emmanuel Macron in Belgrade that Serbia plans to pay 420 million euros for the aircraft in two installments in 2024 and 2025, but did not specify when the country would be able to take delivery of the new fighters.
Earlier, AFP reported that the French fighter jets will replace the Serbian Air Force’s aging fleet of Russian MiG fighters, with Belgrade expected to receive nine single-seat and three two-seat Rafale aircraft by 2029.
Macron welcomed the purchase of 12 French fighter jets from Serbia, calling it a “strategic shift”.
“This is a real change,” he said in response to a question about Serbia’s friendly relations with Russia. Belgrade never imposed sanctions on Moscow after the Ukrainian war, AFP recalled. “We must emphasize that, despite the huge pressure, this is an opportunity for strategic change. This is real strategic courage and an opportunity for Europe,” added the French president, who arrived in Serbia today for the start of a two-day visit to the country.
Our western neighbor is the seventh country to purchase this type of aircraft. It also becomes the third European country, a traditional Russian customer, to choose the multi-purpose twin-engine aircraft after Greece (which has 24 aircraft, 12 of which are second-hand) and Croatia (which purchased 12 second-hand Rafales).
“Another European customer is a big win. It proves once again that after Indonesia, Egypt and India, many countries (Russia’s traditional customers) are turning to France,” said Xavier Titelman, air defense consultant and editor-in-chief of Air & Space magazine.
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