Relationship dossier
Serbia
Sweden
Relationship assessment
Development cooperation alongside disagreement over Kosovo’s status
Serbia toward Sweden
+5Serbia maintains practical cooperation with Sweden through bilateral development and reform initiatives, while opposing Sweden’s recognition of Kosovo and its implications for Serbia’s territorial claims.
Sweden toward Serbia
+10Sweden supports reforms and European integration in Serbia through bilateral development cooperation. Sweden’s recognition of Kosovo remains a significant point of disagreement with the Serbian government.
Overall relationship
+5The relationship combines Swedish support for Serbian reforms and European integration with a major dispute over Kosovo’s status. The cooperation is substantive but does not remove the political disagreement.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Sweden has supported Serbia’s reforms and European integration through bilateral development cooperation. The relationship is also affected by Sweden’s recognition of Kosovo, which conflicts with Serbia’s position on Kosovo’s status. These elements indicate practical cooperation alongside a significant political disagreement.
Areas of tension
- Sweden’s recognition of Kosovo conflicts with Serbia’s position that Kosovo is part of Serbia.
Key developments
Sweden recognized Kosovo, a decision opposed by Serbia.
Sweden’s bilateral development cooperation strategy for the Western Balkans included support for reforms and European integration in Serbia.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and implementation of Swedish bilateral development cooperation with Serbia are unclear.
- The extent of direct Serbian government cooperation with Sweden beyond development and European-integration initiatives is unclear.