Security and international relations researcher Ivana Stradner has drawn attention to Serbia’s ties with Russia as the country prepares for snap parliamentary elections scheduled for October 25.
Stradner said that, while Serbia is preparing for the vote, a Serbian government representative was participating in a panel in Moscow focused on electoral sovereignty, where Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also addressed the forum.
“The Vučić regime is getting ready for elections in October and the Serbian government is attending a panel on electoral sovereignty in Russia where Lavrov just gave a talk,” Stradner wrote on X on September 22.
According to KosovaPress, Marko Janković, deputy chairman of Serbia’s Republic Electoral Commission, took part in the September 22 panel titled “Electoral Sovereignty in the Digital Age: Election Recap,” held as part of the international “Dialogue about Fakes 4.0” forum in Moscow. Representatives from Russia and other countries also participated.
Serbia is currently campaigning ahead of the October 25 parliamentary elections. President Aleksandar Vučić dissolved parliament on September 9 after the Serbian government formally requested the move on September 7.
Stradner, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), has previously raised concerns about foreign influence and the integrity of Serbia’s electoral process. In written testimony presented on September 16 to a U.S. congressional forum, she described the October 25 election as an important moment for Serbia and discussed what she characterized as risks from Russian, Chinese and Iranian interference.
Her comments come amid broader political tensions in Serbia, with the early election taking place after nearly two years of student-led protests and political disputes. Reuters reported that the snap vote was called more than a year ahead of the previously scheduled parliamentary elections.
