Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said he would keep his promise to Russian President Vladimir Putin to visit Moscow next week, even at the risk of angering the European Union.

Vučić insisted that he was "ready to accept any punishment, sanctions, whatever they want" in order to join the Russian president at the celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.

"Eight months ago, I told Putin on the phone that I would come to Moscow on May 9," Vučić said during a visit to the US.

"My word is worth something. No one else should go, no one else should pay the price. I will go," the Serbian leader added.

Vučić is expected to join the leaders of about 20 countries, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, for the huge military parade in Red Square commemorating the defeat of Nazi Germany.

The president of Republika Srpska (RS), Milorad Dodik, is also expected to attend.

Since Putin ordered troops into Ukraine, Serbia has been trying to balance between Brussels and Moscow.

Serbia has been a candidate for EU membership since 2012 – with Vučić insisting on May 1 that the country would "never give up" on the path to membership – and does most of its trade with the bloc.

But it depends almost entirely on Russia for gas supplies. The current supply contract expires this month, and the government is negotiating a new agreement.

The EU has repeatedly called on Belgrade to align itself with Brussels on security and foreign policy issues. However, Serbia has never complied with EU sanctions against Moscow, and several Serbian ministers have visited Russia in recent years. | BGNES