The European Union has told Serbia that maintaining relations with Russia while Moscow continues its aggression against Ukraine is not in line with the values of the bloc and the EU membership process.
This response from Brussels follows a meeting between Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin and Kremlin officials in Moscow, as well as allegations of intelligence cooperation with Russia.
“The EU has been clear with our partners: relations with Russia cannot be normal after Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified war against Ukraine,” the European bloc said in a statement to Radio Free Europe on August 15.
The EU also stated, “We want to consider all candidate countries as reliable European partners with shared principles, values, security, and prosperity.”
According to a Serbian government announcement, Vulin thanked Russian security structures for “warning of plans for mass unrest and an attempted coup” in Serbia.
In Moscow, Vulin discussed with the Secretary of Russia’s Security Council, Sergei Shoigu, the “active participation of foreign forces in artificially inciting tensions.”
The Serbian government described protests against lithium mining as an “attempted coup.” In recent weeks, tens of thousands of people have protested in Belgrade and other Serbian cities.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has accused Western states of being behind the protests.
On August 11, ahead of the protest in Belgrade, Vučić also stated that Russian intelligence warned that “mass unrest was being planned in Serbia with the main goal of a coup and the overthrow of the state leadership.”
The protest passed without major incidents.
