Souvenir shops in Belgrade have something new to offer: mugs, T-shirts, and fridge magnets of Vladimir Putin. The Russian president traveled to the Serbian capital on October 16 to take part in a military parade celebrating the 70th anniversary of the liberation from the Nazis, when Red Army forces fought side by side with Yugoslav partisans. Serb nationalists see Russia as a protector that supported Belgrade during the Kosovo crisis and has refused to recognize Kosovar independence. (RFE/RL's Balkan Service)
Putin Mania In Serbia
1
"Kosovo is Serbia, Crimea is Russia" reads the caption on this T-shirt. Russia annexed Crimea in March, while Serbia lost control of Kosovo after a campaign of NATO air strikes in 1999 and years of UN administration.
2
Vladimir Putin or Justin Bieber? Or maybe Arsenal or Partizan Belgrade? Take your pick from the souvenir badges.
3
More Putin T-shirts, but not in good company. One T-shirt to Putin's right features "Dr. Dabic," the pseudonym under which 1990s Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic evaded justice for nearly 13 years before his arrest in 2008.
4
"Russia, Serbia, Brother For Brother," declares this design, which brings together the Russian and Serbian eagles.
5
A choice of slogans: one T-shirt declares the gratitude of the Serbian nation to Putin, while the other says, "The Olympics May Be Over, But The Games Have Just Begun."
6
A closer look: Putin in uniform superimposed on the Russian and Serbian heraldic eagles
7
Looking cool in shades...
8
... or statesmanlike on a fridge magnet.