Serbia grants citizenship to former Ukrainian MP wanted for treason
Serbia has naturalized former Ukrainian parliamentarian Vadim Novynskyi, who is wanted in Ukraine on high-treason charges.
Serbian Prime Minister Djuro Macut signed a decree that granted citizenship to Vadim Novynskyi, a former Ukrainian lawmaker and businessman, using a fast-track naturalisation provision. The Serbian government did not disclose the specific national interest that justified the decision. Novynskyi, who obtained Ukrainian citizenship in 2012 and was associated with the Opposition Bloc, was notified in absentia in January 2025 of a high-treason suspicion and allegations of inciting religious hatred.
A Kyiv court ordered his detention in absentia, and Ukrainian investigators label him a former “curator” of Russian Orthodox Church interests in Ukraine. He denies acting on Russia’s behalf, and his legal team rejects the accusations. Since 2022 he has lived outside Ukraine, residing in Croatia, and has not returned to Ukraine.
Why it matters
The case highlights Serbia's controversial fast-track citizenship program and its implications for EU security concerns.
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