Diplomatic scandals and campaigns against Serbian representatives in Croatia – Vučić and Serbian propaganda are criticizing Serbs in Croatia and Croatia itself.
The ongoing student protests in Serbia have forced Serbian authorities to use all available propaganda materials in an attempt to halt the protests. Croatia has also emerged as one of the key actors in this conflict, with the targets of criticism directed at some representatives of the Serbian community there.
Following the diplomatic scandal caused by Serbian Ambassador to Croatia Jelena Milić, who left the Christmas reception of the Serbian National Council (SNV) in Croatia, the regime’s campaign turned against Milorad Pupovac, president of the SNV. He is criticized for “applauding youth and students” and for “anti-Serb articles in his newspaper.” It is even claimed that “Pupovac and the SNV are sewn according to the measures of Tudjman.”
Analysts in Belgrade point out that the relationship between Milorad Pupovac and Aleksandar Vučić cannot be compared to their relationships with, for example, the leadership of Republika Srpska or Serbs in Montenegro. Milorad Pupovac himself stated in an interview with DW that he last had contact with the Serbian president a year and a half ago.
Aleksandar Popov, director of the Center for Regionalism from Novi Sad, notes that “the relationship between the authorities in Serbia and the SNV has never been good, because Pupovac is the only Serbian leader in the region who is not under the influence of Belgrade. Jelena Milić’s gesture is just an example of such a relationship.”
Popov adds that “Vučić cannot turn Pupovac into Milorad Dodik.” Pupovac is not a political calculator, and he has done everything in his power to improve the position of the Serbian community in Croatia, so that the position improves or at least does not worsen. “Just look at how Serbs in Kosovo are treated when they hear the Serbian List,” says Popov to DW.
Serbian President Vučić believes he can treat Serbs in Croatia the same way he treats Serbs in Kosovo, Montenegro, and Republika Srpska, says Naim Leo Beširi, director of the Belgrade Institute for European Affairs. “The difference is significant because Croatia has certain institutions, and Serbs in Croatia know how to use some institutional mechanisms.” What Vučić thinks about Croatia and Serbs in Croatia is also reflected in the appointment of Jelena Milić as Serbia’s ambassador to Croatia. “She came to this post after several years of work in SNS and without any diplomatic knowledge or experience,” Beširi says to DW.
Naim Leo Beširi believes that “Vučić has long been trying to turn Pupovac into Dodik.” I think this also has to do with who will succeed Pupovac in Croatia. “This is exactly how the current campaign against the SNV leader by Serbian authorities can be interpreted, and I think Vučić will certainly try to create a new person who will obey the Serbian authorities in Belgrade.”
Milorad Pupovac tells DW that everything that happened between the Serbian authorities and the SNV is linked to two things: “One is how Serbian diplomacy works in Zagreb, and the other is related to the internal situation in Serbia.” Pupovac recalls that “Serbia has been a country of protests for thirty years, and this is nothing surprising.” “Serbia is a very traumatized society,” says the president of SNV in an interview with DW.
“I think the Croatian government made a good move by not reacting to all the accusations coming from Serbia,” notes Aleksandar Popov, adding that “the main problem is that Vučić cannot influence Pupovac. In Republika Srpska, the situation is different with Milorad Dodik and his people,” says Popov.
Naim Leo Beširi believes that Pupovac “wisely drew attention to the fact that there is no freedom of speech or parliamentary debate in Serbia, and that his response came during the awards ceremony.” “On the other hand, Pupovac is the only Serbian leader in the region whose capital is Zagreb, and his country is Croatia, and this is something that Vučić cannot change,” emphasizes our interlocutor from the Institute for European Affairs.
Milorad Pupovac also highlights “the importance of Serbia as a democratic and stable country.” For DW, he says that when it comes to relations between the two countries, “we need to continue working to reduce bad relations and to reduce the negative atmosphere in relations between the two countries.”
However, this is easier said than done. Serbian President Vučić used the student protests to launch attacks on Croatia and on the students’ demands, which were presented as part of a conspiracy between Croatian secret services and traitors in Serbia. When this is combined with Vučić’s constant comparisons with Croatia, from economic to military, it is clear that every crisis in Serbia reminds us of an old political slogan: “When times are hard – blame Croatia.”
Naim Leo Beširi views this ongoing attempt to compete with Croatia in the context of Vučić’s disappointment, as Croatia, with its membership in NATO and the EU, has progressed much ahead of Serbia. “If Croatia were to stall now and Serbia would advance economically by 10 percent per year – which is practically impossible – Serbia would catch up with Croatia in 20 years. Meanwhile, it would take Serbia 60 years to catch up with Slovenia. Vučić knows this, and for this, he must constantly invent enemies and create a cacophony in the country to remain in power,” says Beširi.
This rhetoric, Popov notes, is no longer even responded to by Croatia, and he observes: “The Serbian government has decided that this is the most suitable way to label someone. This distracts attention from the internal problems they are otherwise creating themselves. It seems to me that in this sense, Belgrade would have preferred that Primorac had won the presidential elections in Croatia instead of Milanović, because – when it comes to the Serbian Progressive Party and the HDZ – they are sister parties that even support each other in times of crisis.” DW.
