In a scathing critique of Belgrade’s current regime, Zoran Korać, the former Deputy Prime Minister under the reformist Zoran Đinđić administration and former Vice President of the Serbian Parliament, labeled President Aleksandar Vučić as “a remnant of a horrific political legacy.”
Speaking in an expansive interview with the media outlet Ideje on Friday, July 3, 2026, Korać delivered a blunt assessment of Serbia’s domestic governance and its long-standing geopolitical denial regarding the statehood of Kosovo.
A Relic of Regional Devastation
Korać did not mince words when discussing Vučić’s political lineage and current strategies, linking the current Serbian leadership directly to the catastrophic nationalist doctrines of the 1990s.
“Serbian President Vučić is the remnant of a horrific policy that caused hundreds of thousands of victims throughout the region,” Korać stated emphatically, pointing out that despite the historical ruin brought by that ideology, the current establishment in Belgrade refuses to truly abandon its foundational tenets.
Facing the Political Reality of Kosovo
Turning his attention to the frozen conflict between Belgrade and Pristina, Korać characterized Vučić’s rhetoric as nothing more than standard Serbian ultra-nationalism. However, he urged the Serbian public and political class to break their collective illusion and address Kosovo as the sovereign entity it has functionally become.
[ZORAN KORAĆ'S CONTRAST DIALOGUE]
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┌────────────────────────┴────────────────────────┐
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[THE REALITY OF KOSOVO] [BELGRADE'S RHETORIC]
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• Operates as a completely separate country • Trapped in standard nationalist tropes
• Holds stable, democratic election cycles • Uses Kosovo to stoke domestic populism
• Possesses functional sovereign institutions • Refuses to acknowledge de facto autonomy
While Korać acknowledged that a sudden, formal capitulation from Belgrade is unlikely under the current administration, he maintained that honesty is the only viable path forward.
“He [Vučić] has already delivered several speeches at his rallies talking about Kosovo in the exact same manner that Serbian nationalists always do,” Korać observed. “I do not expect him to suddenly stand up and declare: ‘Kosovo is independent, we are washing our hands of it.’ But we absolutely must talk about Kosovo realistically—and the reality is that it is already a completely separate country that has successfully conducted a consecutive series of highly democratic elections.”
