Brussels – In life and in politics, timing is everything. A lesson that may soon backfire on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Not in front of the cameras, but in the streets of Serbia, where for over four months, hundreds of thousands of students and citizens have been demanding that Brussels withdraw its support for the corrupt system of President Aleksandar Vučić.
“The timing of this meeting sends a highly troubling and harmful signal given the depth and gravity of political crisis in Serbia,” reads a letter signed by 31 MEPs, referring to the upcoming meeting between the two leaders, scheduled for “next week,” as announced by the EU institution’s chief spokesperson.
The letter expresses “deep concern” that holding such a meeting “at this critical juncture” could further reinforce “perceptions that the EU ignores democratic backsliding” while also “gravely alienating” the Serbian people from the EU.
MEPs oppose von der Leyen-Vučić meeting
As highlighted in the letter sponsored by Slovenian MEP Vladimir Prebilič (The Greens/EFA), the EU candidate country has experienced the largest protests in its history, driven by a growing public demand for accountability, transparency, and democratic reform—”values that the European Union stands for.”
However, the EU’s credibility in the Western Balkans has been “severely undermined” over the past few decades. “It comes as no surprise” at the absence of EU flags at these demonstrations, the 31 MEPs from four political groups (S&D, Greens, The Left, and Renew Europe) state, given “the number of undelivered promises and EU’s support for stabilitocracy over democratic standards.”
Given that the European Commission has failed to take a strong stance against the persecution of civil society in the candidate country, this kind of meeting “is not only highly problematic but also profoundly misguided.” Furthermore, it seems highly unlikely that von der Leyen will alter her stance compared to previous months. Speaking to The New Union Post, MEP Prebilič described it as “incomprehensible” that she praised Belgrade’s “significant progress,” when “in reality, there has been none—neither in fundamental reforms nor in governance.”
The letter calls the reconsideration of this meeting and called for sending a “clear and firm” message on behalf of the EU: “Serbia urgently needs a transitional government of electoral confidence and civic unity to restore public trust and lay the groundwork for genuinely free and fair elections.” This is essential because the Balkan country “belongs to Europe,” and all the EU institutions must demonstrate “through our actions that we truly uphold our values and principles.”
What is happening in Serbia
Following the collapse of Novi Sad’s railway station canopy on 1 November 2024—resulted in 15 deaths and two severe injuries—a wave of mass protests erupted across the country. After students were attacked in Belgrade during a silent tribute to the victims, blockades of educational institutions began on 22 November at the Faculty of Dramatic Arts, with other faculties and high schools joining in soon after.
The level of organisation behind the protests has reached remarkable heights all over the country. Universities are occupied, with decisions made through grassroots democracy in student plenums. Schools at all levels are either closed or holding discussions between teachers, parents, and pupils on the state of democracy and education. Every day at 11:52 a.m.—the time of the Novi Sad tragedy—students block major crossroads in Belgrade and in the other cities, observing 15 minutes of complete silence. People of all ages join their marches and urge to continue.
It is clear that President Vučić’s regime cannot meet the students’ anti-corruption demands without jeopardising its own survival. Take the Novi Sad railway station, for example—reopened just months before the tragedy after a three-year renovation by a consortium of Chinese companies. Yet, no public information is available on the tender or the project behind the infrastructure. Repression has intensified with a crackdown on NGOs and the deployment of a ‘sonic cannon’—a device capable of causing pain, dizziness, and hearing damage—against hundreds of thousands of people observing a 15-minute silence in Belgrade on 15 March.
The lack of support from Brussels for the movement advocating the rule of law in Serbia is widely seen as prioritising economic interests over core democratic values. The lithium extraction project in the Jadar River Valley is the most frequently cited example. The EU-Serbia Memorandum of Understanding on lithium, signed in July 2024, concerns the extraction of a resource crucial to the EU automotive sector’s green transition from one of the world’s largest deposits. More than just an economic deal, it exposes the nature of Vučić’s grip on power and the European Commission’s vulnerability.
