Russian antiwar activist allowed into Serbia after spending more than a day at the Belgrade airport

By JOVANA GEC
Associated Press

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Serbian authorities have allowed into the country a Russian antiwar activist who was previously denied entry and had spent more than one day at the Belgrade airport. Peter Nikitin says he received no explanation from the authorities about either the entry ban or why it was revoked. He is a fierce critic of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. Nikitin told Serbian media he believed Moscow was behind his ordeal and that the only explanation he can think of is that “this was done on Putin’s order.” Serbia formally seeks European Union membership and has condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. However, it has maintained friendly relations with Moscow and refused to impose Western-backed sanctions over the aggression.