BELGRADE, Serbia — Serbia on April 20 publicly displayed a recently delivered Chinese anti-aircraft missile system, raising concerns in the West and among some of Serbia’s neighbors that an arms buildup in the Balkans could threaten fragile peace in the region. The sophisticated HQ-22 surface-to-air system was delivered recently by a dozen Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force Y-20 transport planes, in what was believed to be the largest-ever airlift delivery of Chinese arms to Europe.
Although Serbia officially seeks membership in the European Union, it has been arming itself mostly with Russian and Chinese weapons, including T-72 battle tanks, MiG-29 fighter jets, Mi-35 attack helicopters and drones.
Back in 2020, U.S. officials warned Belgrade against purchasing HQ-22 missile systems, whose export version is known as FK-3. They said that if Serbia really wants to join the EU and other Western alliances, it must align its military equipment with Western standards.
The Chinese missile system has been widely compared to the American Patriot and the Russian S-300 surface-to-air missile systems, although it has a shorter range than more advanced S-300s. Serbia is the first operator of the Chinese missiles in Europe.
Poster Comment:
The Israelis sold the Patriot system to China. The Chinese built the earlier HQ 9 which they sold to Iran. It was also based on the S-300 and the Patriot system. The Iranians have built their own version of the S-300. China bought the S-400. I believe the Iranians would like to buy the S-400 as well. The Russians promised it but reneged due to pressure from their Jewish Lobby.