Speaking from Tivat yesterday, the Serbian President turns a defensive press conference into an aggressive counter-offensive, targeting Montenegrin lawmakers and threatening to reject the host country’s “historical lies.”
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has dramatically escalated political tensions with Montenegro during his arrival at the EU-Western Balkans Summit in Tivat. Facing intense diplomatic pressure following the deportation of 87 state-backed Serbian operatives, Vučić went on the offensive, explicitly accusing thousands of Montenegrin citizens—including sitting Members of Parliament—of invading Belgrade to overthrow his government.
In a fiery briefing covered extensively by regional outlets, including Blic, Vučić attempted to deflect from the grounding of his party’s shadow workforce by retroactively weaponizing the violent March 15 student protests in Belgrade as a diplomatic bargaining chip.
“More than 2,000 citizens of Montenegro participated in those riots on March 15,” Vučić claimed while standing on Montenegrin soil. “Mind you, they participated in demonstrations that were aimed at overturning the constitutional order of the Republic of Serbia. Did we ever accuse Montenegro of that?”
Threatening Regional Stability: “I Will Not Respect Your Historical Lies”
Political observers note that Vučić’s rhetoric marks a calculated effort to inflame nationalist sentiments and project strength to his domestic audience after his infiltration network was dismantled by French and Montenegrin intelligence.
Instead of adopting a conciliatory tone with his hosts, President Jakov Milatović and Prime Minister Milojko Spajić, Vučić used the venue to issue sweeping, non-negotiable ultimatums regarding Montenegro’s sovereign statehood and foreign policy.
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Vučić's Tivat Directives: Key Escalation Points │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ • RETROACTIVE ACCUSATIONS: Alleges 2,000+ Montenegrins and MPs actively │
│ tried to violently topple the Serbian government on March 15. │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ • GEOPOLITICAL REJECTION: Publicly stated "right in the middle of │
│ Montenegro" that he will refuse to respect their history or borders. │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ • KOSOVO ULTIMATUM: Re-emphasized complete defiance toward Podgorica's │
│ recognition of Kosovo, labeling it "the theft of Serbian territory." │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
“I am telling you this right in the middle of Montenegro: I will not respect your historical lies and counterfeits,” Vučić stated defiantly, further straining an already fragile bilateral relationship.
The Defiance Campaign: Shifting Blame to “Anti-Regime Banners”
According to reports by Blic, Vučić fiercely defended the 87 sports-club enforcers, MMA fighters, and SNS party operatives who were turned away at Tivat Airport, portraying them as entirely benign figures who were merely victims of a political misunderstanding.
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ The Narrative Battleground in Tivat │
├───────────────────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────┤
│ ALLIED INTELLIGENCE FINDINGS │ VUČIĆ'S REGIME NARRATIVE │
├───────────────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────┤
│ • Convicted violent offenders and │ • Innocent "activists" sent to │
│ state-backed street enforcers. │ hold up welcoming banners. │
├───────────────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────┤
│ • Coordinated hybrid operation │ • Minor oversight by staff that│
│ exposed by France's DGSE agency. │ will cost "political points."│
└───────────────────────────────────────┴────────────────────────────────┘
Vučić claimed the deportees had no intention of disrupting Montenegrin security, sarcastically suggesting they were only there to “beautify” his arrival with favorable street banners. “Imagine if we had done what they did to us—treating them like the worst monsters on earth,” Vučić argued, attempting to frame Serbia as the true injured party in the transatlantic security dispute.
By accusing Podgorica of harboring anti-Serbian revolutionaries while simultaneously threatening to reject Montenegro’s post-independence historical framework, Vučić has effectively ensured that the EU-Western Balkans Summit opens under a thick cloud of manufactured regional hostility.
