Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić declared today that Serbia must reach a final decision on the future ownership of the Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS) within the next seven days, after the United States warned that Serbian financial institutions are at risk due to NIS’s Russian-controlled status.
Speaking publicly at a government session, Vučić said that the “last resort” measure would be nationalization of the company—if no compromise is reached with potential investors.
U.S. Pressure and Warning Signals
The move comes after the U.S. Treasury Department applied full sanctions on NIS as of 9 October, underlining that the company must no longer remain majority-owned by Russian entities. The U.S. has insisted on a “permanent change of ownership”, according to Serbia’s Minister of Energy Dubravka Đedović Handanović, who spoke before Vučić.
“We’ve received a clear message from the U.S. — Russian shareholders must exit NIS,” said Đedović Handanović, adding that Serbia has not received any crude oil via the JANAF pipeline for 27 days, and current reserves are limited to “a matter of days”.
She also said she is “ready to resign” if a solution cannot be found.
“Banks Could Be Sanctioned” – Vučić
President Vučić revealed that U.S. officials have warned him directly that Serbia’s banks and credit rating could be jeopardized if action is not taken.
“I asked the Americans for 7 or 8 more days. I think I got that — but we will know for sure later today,” Vučić noted. “We have to protect our financial sector and ensure credit stability.”
He pointed out that Croatia has already halted oil transit via JANAF, refusing to wait for diplomatic resolution and avoiding sanctions risk.
The president also confirmed ongoing talks with European and Asian investors who have been negotiating with Russia on taking majority control of NIS. Serbia is prepared to pay more than market value if needed, Vučić said, emphasizing that no property will be seized by force.
Political Fallout and Uncertain Future
Vučić emphasized that the decision must be made by the end of this week, warning that Serbia faces collapse after 13 February if NIS’s status is unresolved.
Critics have pointed out that the government’s long-standing refusal to align with Western sanctions against Russia has led Serbia to this crisis point, a sentiment echoed by Minister Siniša Mali, who said it was time to “think about ourselves” after years of “understanding for Russian friends.”
Meanwhile, an attempt by Russian shareholders to obtain a U.S. license by offering to relinquish control to a third-party buyer was rejected by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), making the window for action increasingly narrow.
