Aleksandar Vučić is once again weaponizing a national fiasco to polish his image as Serbia’s “savior.” This time, the crisis he is exploiting is the collapse surrounding the Oil Industry of Serbia (NIS) a collapse caused by nothing other than his own long-term political servility to Moscow.
Instead of taking responsibility for years of willingly handing Serbia’s energy system to Russia, Vučić performs his usual routine: others deliver the bad news,he delivers the ‘miraculous’ solution,
and the entire nation is forced to watch the same propaganda theater on repeat.
For months, he ignored U.S. warnings about sanctions tied to NIS’s Russian ownership. Now, in classic Vučić style, he pretends Serbia is an “innocent victim stuck between two superpowers,” as if he personally didn’t build this dependency brick by brick.
And soon according to his announcements the so-called “solution” will be revealed. But the real question is: how many times will Vučić burn the country and then return with a fire extinguisher, demanding applause?
Experts: Vučić’s Electorate Has Been Conditioned to Obey
Demostat researcher Milomir Mandić explains the obvious: the president’s supporters are shaped by authoritarian political conditioning. They don’t follow Vučić because of policy they follow him because they’ve been trained to see him as the only authority capable of decision-making.
Vučić knows this.
That’s why he orchestrates the entire media atmosphere before announcing any decision. The pattern is familiar:
- raise panic,
- announce impossible danger,
- show yourself as the hero fixing it all.
This method has worked for him since 2012, and he continues using it aggressively.
“Russophiles Won’t Abandon Him—He Has Already Molded Them”
Political analyst Đorđe Vukadinović says plainly: Vučić will not lose his pro-Russian voters over NIS. Why? Because he has already reshaped his electorate into a loyal army that obeys him completely, regardless of what he says or which direction he drags the country.
Even if he makes a U-turn against Russia tomorrow, the same voters would defend him fiercely. That is how deep the cult of personality has sunk into Serbian politics.
Vučić’s Electorate Is Confused, Exhausted, and Yet Still Controlled
Researcher Andrej Ševo points out that progressive voters are confused after months of propaganda that contradicts the reality of empty wallets, soaring prices, and a country sliding into deeper crisis.
But a successful “resolution” of the NIS scandal no matter how artificially manufactured will be spun as proof of Vučić’s invincibility. It’s not about solving Serbia’s problems; it’s about tightening control over his political base.
Crisis Marketing: Vučić’s Favorite Playground
Marketing expert Nikola Parun reveals what everyone already knows: Vučić applies the same crisis-management script every time.
- Ministers deliver the fear.
- Vučić delivers the “hope.”
This isn’t leadership—it’s manipulation.
And behind the manipulation is a simple truth: the NIS disaster is the total failure of Serbia’s so-called neutral foreign policy a policy Vučić inherited, expanded, and then used to keep Serbia tied to authoritarian regimes.
The Real Responsibility
The NIS catastrophe isn’t an accident. It’s the result of:
- four years of reckless pro-Russian policy by the old government,
- thirteen years of Vučić’s rule,
- and complete dependence on one foreign power—Russia—created and maintained by SNS.
Now Vučić will almost certainly present any outcome as a “victory” for himself.
But what would victory actually mean for ordinary people?
Simply that gas stations won’t run dry and people won’t freeze in winter.
For Serbia, however, real victory would mean something Vučić has consistently avoided:
breaking free from authoritarian influences and securing an energy sector that doesn’t depend on the political mood of a foreign dictator.
Yet Vučić is incapable of delivering such a future because dependency is the political fuel that keeps him in power.
