Russia wanted to create a brigade of mercenaries from Serbia

Russia attempted to form a brigade of Serbian mercenaries within one of its airborne divisions, but the endeavor fell short of expectations, with only around 100 Serbs recruited, according to reports from the BBC's Russian editorial office.

The recruitment efforts, initially reported in January 2023, were overseen by individuals like Dejan Beric, a Serbian citizen with prior mercenary experience in Russia who had fought in Donbas against Ukraine in 2014, and Zika Radojicic.

Russia's unsuccessful bid to form a Serbian brigade

These mercenaries, aspiring to serve in the Russian military and participate in the conflict against Ukraine, entered into contracts with the Russian Ministry of Defense, subsequently being assigned to the 106th Airborne Division. Davor Savicić, who had also taken part in the Donbas conflict in 2014, played a role in recruitment. He had promised to establish an entire brigade composed of Serbian recruits by autumn of that year. However, these assurances proved unfounded, leading to the suspension of the Serbian recruitment project.

The recruitment scheme was devised by Moscow Oblast authorities due to a shortage of conscripts in the region. Roman Karatayev, one of the deputy governors of the capital region, served as the principal coordinator. Serbs were registered for service in the Russian army at the commissariat in the town of Krasnogorsk, near Moscow, as part of this initiative.

Several notable individuals were involved in these recruitment activities, including Aleksandr Zaldostanov, the leader of the Kremlin-affiliated "Night Wolves" motorcycle club, and Marko Milosevic, the son of former Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic, who faced accusations of war crimes from the International Criminal Court (ICC), as reported by the BBC.