Joint Drone Production: A New Stage In Serbia-Israel Military Cooperation

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Cooperation between Serbia and Israel in the defence industry has entered a completely new phase. What began with major purchases of Israeli weaponry has evolved into a strategic partnership that includes the joint production of combat drones on Serbian soil. President Aleksandar Vučić has confirmed that Serbia and Israel’s Elbit Systems will open a factory in Simanovci near Belgrade, scheduled for mid-September 2026, where advanced short- and long-range unmanned systems will be manufactured. Elbit holds a majority stake of 51 percent, while Serbia’s Yugoimport SDPR retains 49 percent. Vučić has repeatedly emphasised that Serbia alone “does not know how to make drones the way Israel does,” but that together they will create “the best drones in this part of the world” – expensive, yet highly effective in destroying armoured vehicles and personnel, while transferring technology and training local personnel.

This move is not unexpected. It is a logical continuation of a series of major contracts. In early 2025, Serbia purchased PULS artillery systems and Hermes drones from Elbit for around 335 million dollars. In August of the same year, an even larger arrangement followed, worth approximately 1.6 billion dollars, covering long-range missiles, drones, electronic warfare systems and advanced ISTAR capabilities. At the same time, Serbian exports of ammunition and military equipment to Israel have risen dramatically – from modest figures before 2023 to over 100 million euros in subsequent years – further cementing mutual interdependence. In this way, Serbia is not only modernising its armed forces, which for a long time relied on older Soviet-era technology, but is also actively building its own production capacities and opening up export possibilities.

Geopolitically, this cooperation sends a significant signal. Serbia, formally a candidate for European Union membership, continues to balance between East and West: it is acquiring Rafale jets from France, systems from China, maintaining ties with Russia, and now deepening a military-technological alliance with Israel. For Belgrade, this means diversifying sources of supply, reducing dependence on any single partner and strengthening defensive autonomy in an unstable region. For Jerusalem, the partnership with Serbia opens a door to the Balkans and Europe at a time when some Western countries are imposing political and moral obstacles on Israel’s defence industry. Elbit, one of Israel’s largest manufacturers, gains a production base closer to the European market and opportunities for expanded sales, while Serbia gains access to technologies tested under real conditions.

Analytically speaking, the joint factory brings both opportunities and risks. On the positive side, technology transfer, employment, the development of the domestic industry and the possibility for Serbia to become a regional player in unmanned systems production can strengthen the country’s economic and military position in the long term. Drones have already proven that they are changing the nature of modern warfare – from Ukraine to the Middle East – so possessing indigenous production capacity confers a strategic advantage. On the other hand, the close link with Israel’s defence industry, particularly in the context of the conflict in Gaza, draws criticism from parts of the international public and may complicate relations with certain European partners. Questions also remain about how deep the actual technology transfer will be, and how dependent Serbia will remain on Israeli know-how and components.

In a broader context, the strengthening of Serbian-Israeli military cooperation reflects a wider reality: in an era of hybrid threats and rapid technological change, states choose partners on the basis of practical interests rather than purely ideological or historical ties. Serbia is thereby sending a message that it is prepared to build its own capacities and will not remain merely a buyer, but also a producer. If the project is successfully realised, the factory in Simanovci will not be just an industrial facility – it will become a symbol of Belgrade’s new geopolitical positioning and proof that the defence industry can serve as one of the pillars of national strategy in the 21st century.

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