The journalist of the respected Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Michael Martens, announced on the X platform that, according to his "verified sources", Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was supposed to visit Belgrade on Thursday, May 21, but that visit was postponed.
Martens states that on May 13 he received information from what he says is a "very reliable source" that Zelenski will come to Serbia, which is why he himself traveled to Belgrade for preparations. However, later, as he claims, he found out from another source that the visit will not take place on the planned date "for specific reasons", noting that it could happen soon, but that the date will probably be known only at the last moment.
Martens also presents political interpretations of a possible visit, stating that Zelenski's arrival in Belgrade could also be interpreted through the prism of Serbia's attitude towards the war in Ukraine and the perception of its outcome. He asks how a possible invitation to the Ukrainian president would reflect official Belgrade's assessment of the situation at the front and Russia's position.
"If you were the president of Serbia and expected a Russian victory, would you host Zelensky in Belgrade?" Martens asks in one of the posts, adding that the same question could be asked in the opposite direction - as such a move reflects the assessment of the outcome of the war.
However, he emphasizes that these are his personal speculations and not official positions.
Until now, contacts between the presidents of Serbia and Ukraine have mostly taken place during international political summits, attended by both leaders. Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, the Serbian president has visited Ukraine once - on June 11, 2025, in Odessa, where the Ukraine - Southeast Europe summit was held.
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