Serbia is deepening co-operation with Iran in field of artificial intelligence ( IA) and information technologies, at a time when an initiative for imposing sanctions on Serbian officials is being discussed in the American Senate, among other things, for co-operation with Tehran, Russia and China.

According to a report Radio Free Europe ( REL, Serbia and Iran signed a memorandum of co-operation in the field of information and communication technologies in February 2025. Since then, both sides have taken steps to implement the agreement and enhance co-operation.

The memorandum includes such areas as artificial intelligence, information security, electronic trade, and electronic governance. The Iranian side has also expressed interest in co-operation in 5G technology, digital infrastructure, cyber security, data centres and the development of joint research labs.

In early July 2026, Serbian Minister of Information and Telecommunication Boris Bratina met in Tehran with Iranian counterpart Seyed Sattar Hashem. During the meeting, they agreed on forming a joint committee for implementation of the memorandum.

Hashem said Iran is willing to share with Serbia the experience in producing hardware equipment, developing data centres and cloud infrastructure, as well as in implementing joint projects in artificial intelligence.

One of the goals mentioned by the Iranian side was the creation of a corridor for broadcasting data between Iran and the Balkan region.

However, Serbia’s Ministry of Information and Telecommunications did not answer REL questions concerning concrete progress in co-operation and projects that could be realised under the agreement.

Artificial intelligence expert Aleksandar Linc Djordjevic has named Serbian-Iranian co-operation as a diplomatic cerroclobatic, questioning the concrete technological benefits Serbia may have from this relationship.

He has stressed that co-operation is developing in a complicated context, as the United States has open conflict with Iran, while large American technology companies operate in Serbia.

I don’t know what Iran can offer Serbia technologically through this co-operation, Djordjevic told REL.

According to American Chamber of Commerce data, American companies such as IBM, Microsoft and Oracle are present in Serbia’s artificial intelligence sector.

In March 2026, the Government’s Office for Information Technology and Electronic Governance of Serbia also signed a memorandum of co-operation with representatives of the IBM company in the field of information technology and artificial intelligence.

Djordjevic has warned that Iran’s involvement in Serbia’s information and communication systems could be seen as danger by American companies and trigger reactions from Washington if the agreements are implemented in practice.

Serbia faces pressure from US, EU

Co-operation with Iran is under way as a two-party initiative for adopting a law for Serbia, which also proposes financial sanctions and visa restrictions on Serbian officials, has been presented in the US Senate.

In the text presented by Republican Senator Chuck Grasley and Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal, it is said that Serbia and Iran have deepened technological and political ties, despite broad sanctions that the US and the international community have imposed on Tehran.

On the other hand, Serbia targets membership in the European Union and, in early October, joined a US-led partnership for possibilities in the field of artificial intelligence, signing the relevant declaration to the United Nations.

According to the REL, Belgrade has linked agreements in the field of information and communication technologies, telecommunications, information security or artificial intelligence, including about ten other countries, including China, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Israel, Egypt, Turkey and the United Kingdom.

Co-operation with China has intensified since 2019. During 2026 the two countries signed a memorandum of co-operation in artificial intelligence and an agreement on the establishment of the World Organization for Co-operation in this field.

These developments have sparked criticism from the US and the European Commission. Brussels has reminded Serbia of the pledge to harmonise its legislation with European regulations, including the EU Act for artificial intelligence.

Iran Aims to Develop Local Powers in IA

Due to international isolation and limited access to Western technology, Iran has tried to develop its capacities in the field of artificial intelligence.

According to an analysis by the American cyber security company Recred Futurre, Tehran is aiming to build a local ecosystem of artificial intelligence and strengthen research capacities, although economic isolation limits access to human technology and capital.

Iran has drafted a national guide for artificial intelligence, with targets involving eight billion dollars worth of investment, implementation of this technology in 45 percent of industrial sectors, and increased contributions to 12 percent of Bruto’s domestic production by 2032.

Meanwhile, Serbia has a strategy for developing artificial intelligence for the period 20252030, as well as ethical guidelines for its development and use, but still does not have a special law regulating this field.

According to expert Djordjevic, Serbia has good technological capacities, especially in terms of engineers’ competencies, as well as a national platform for artificial intelligence, which started working in late 2021 at the State Data Centre in Kragujevc.

 

Source Layer: Dukeagini