German media have closely covered Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić’s resignation, highlighting the timing of his decision ahead of the October 25 parliamentary elections and his stated intention to seek the post of prime minister.
Germany’s public broadcaster ARD reported that Vučić’s resignation had been expected and came after he called early parliamentary elections. According to ARD, Vučić is the leading candidate of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) and intends to return to the prime minister’s office if his political bloc wins the election. He previously served as prime minister from 2014 to 2017.
ARD also noted that, despite serving as president since 2017, Vučić has continued to exercise significant influence over political developments in Serbia. The broadcaster identified the student movement’s electoral list as a major contender in the parliamentary race and recalled that the movement emerged following the November 2024 railway station canopy collapse in Novi Sad, which killed 16 people.
The German news agency dpa, as cited by Deutsche Welle, described Vučić’s resignation as part of his strategy to seek the premiership following months of mass protests and political pressure. It reported that Vučić had also pardoned 49 opposition figures as one of his final acts as president, including 23 people facing proceedings connected to student-led protests.
Dpa further reported that observers view Vučić’s decision as an attempt to consolidate his political power. The agency also referred to criticism from opponents who accuse him of authoritarian tendencies, while noting that Vučić and his party have dominated Serbian politics for more than a decade.
Foreign policy and regional tensions
German coverage has also focused on Serbia’s foreign-policy balancing between the European Union, the United States and Russia.
Dpa noted Vučić’s recent communication with Russian President Vladimir Putin over continued Russian gas supplies, while also pointing to Serbia’s cooperation with Ukraine and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy following his visit to Belgrade in August.
The agency also referred to criticism from some EU representatives over the public honoring of former Bosnian Serb military commander Ratko Mladić, who died while serving a life sentence at the UN detention facility in The Hague and was buried in Belgrade with military honors.
According to ARD, Vučić’s resignation came roughly six months before the scheduled end of his presidential mandate. Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabić has assumed the presidential duties on an interim basis, while presidential elections are constitutionally required within three months.
Deutsche Welle’s review of German-language coverage emphasized that the resignation has opened the way for Vučić to campaign for a return to the prime minister’s office in the October 25 parliamentary elections.
