Western sanctions do not affect perception of Belarus by Serbs as strategically important partner

Serbs consider agriculture, food, and trade to be the most promising areas of cooperation with Belarus. Such data from a sociological study were announced by Dusan Prorokovic, senior researcher and director of the Center for Eurasian Studies at the Institute of International Politics and Economics of Serbia, BELTA reports.

The Serbs see the development of long-term relations between Serbia and Belarus as promising, especially in the sphere of agriculture and food (51.3%), trade (28.6%), and mechanical engineering (26.6%).

In the context of economic relations, Serbs emphasize the importance of developing trade and a wider representation of products from both countries on the markets of Belarus and Serbia.

At the same time, the most famous Belarusian brands include leaders in mechanical engineering (MAZ, MTZ), flagships of household appliances (Atlant, Gefest), manufacturers of cosmetics (Belita) and confectionery (Kommunarka).

It is noteworthy that the sanctions pressure exerted on Belarus by the West does not affect the perception of Belarus by Serbs as a strategically important partner. According to Serbs, priority areas for developing cooperation in the social sphere are education, tourism, culture and religion.

Serbs also consider it necessary to develop cooperation with Belarus in such areas as production (80.9%), education and science (78.7%), trade and economics (77.8%), tourism (70.2%), culture (67.3%), society (64.1%), religion (56.4%), and finance (40.1%).

"It was very interesting for us to see what our society, citizens think about Belarus. For me, the most important thing is that this is the first step for the following studies. We need to think not only at the political level, but also at the scientific level, how to achieve progress, develop bilateral relations with friendly states. Belarus is on the front line here. And the first step is this study," said Dusan Prorokovic. "Our society supports cooperation with the Republic of Belarus. Serbia can be a window for Belarusian products to the European Union due to the agreements that we have with the EU. And Belarus can be a window for our production in the EAEU. There is a wide space for cooperation. We can do joint projects in the economy. Your MAZ and BelAZ trucks work well in Serbia. In Serbia, they know that Belarus is an agro-industrial force. You have a very strong agro-industrial complex. And the development of the tourism sector will help us learn more about each other."

Developing relations with friendly states requires constant consideration of public opinion and requests. One of the ways is to conduct counter studies: two sociological centers simultaneously organize a representative survey in their own country using a similar methodology and a previously agreed upon toolkit (questionnaire).

In December 2024, such a counter study was conducted between Belarus and Serbia. In Serbia, the study was organized by the Institute of International Politics and Economics with the involvement of the independent research center House of Win, which specializes in conducting sociological and marketing research.

The survey was conducted using phone interviews (sample - 1,590 respondents). In the Republic of Belarus, the survey was conducted by the Center for Social and Humanitarian Research of the Belarusian State University of Economics, which has extensive experience in conducting similar international surveys in the study of socio-economic relations. The survey was conducted using door-to-door interviews (sample - 1,500 respondents).

The main goal is to identify the features of mutual perception of Belarusians and Serbs, to determine the most promising areas of cooperation and development of friendly relations between the two countries.