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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Serbia activates EU Civil Protection Mechanism due to major wildfires

Belgrade, 21 August 2026

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior Ivica Dačić said today that Serbia has activated the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism due to the exceptionally difficult wildfire situation, which has enabled access to the satellite fire monitoring system.

Following a meeting with Slovenian Minister of the Interior Franci Matoz, Dačić also said that a request has been submitted for aircraft with greater water-carrying capacity, while assistance in the form of an Ilyushin-76 aircraft has been requested from the Russian Federation.

The Deputy Prime Minister stressed that the decision to deploy the Russian Ilyushin-76 aircraft was made on the basis of the expert assessment of those directing firefighting operations on the ground.

He said that any assistance in the form of higher-capacity aircraft and machinery, provided it can be deployed on the demanding sandy terrain, is invaluable and that Serbia will accept it.

Dačić noted that the situation remains most severe in Deliblato Sands, where more than 400 members of various services are engaged every day.

In certain parts of the fire zone, as he pointed out, even heavy machinery cannot gain access because of the sandy terrain, while the wind constantly changes direction and hampers firefighting efforts, making the assessments of personnel on the ground crucial to every decision.

He recalled that the Emergency Situations Sector carried out more than 39,000 interventions last year and saved more than 1,400 lives, adding that there are currently several dozen fires every day across Serbia.