VIDEO: Serbia at the Crossroads

BELGRADE, SERBIA—On August 12, 2025, in the cities of Vrbas and Bačka Palanka, Serbia, several hundred people took to the streets to protest against the repression by the regime of President Aleksandar Vučić. That evening, pro-government supporters attacked demonstrators, throwing stones and frozen water bottles and targeting them with fireworks. The protestors retaliated, throwing objects back at Vučić’s supporters. The police did not intervene, though they were also struck several times.These events sparked outrage, in part because the police stood by and allowed the violent attacks by Vučić’s supporters against the demonstrators, and on August 13, people in several Serbian cities protested in front of the ruling party’s offices. The police responded with force, and since then, clashes between protestors and police have continued across Serbia. Almost every night, the streets of the capital, Belgrade, and other Serbian cities are filled with police deploying tear gas and armored vehicles on one side, and regime opponents on the other.The roots of the uprising stretch back to November 1, 2024, when a concrete canopy weighing over 300 tons collapsed at the railway station in Novi Sad, killing 16 people. This canopy had been officially reopened just four months earlier after reconstruction.This tragic event sparked a wave of protests across Serbia, led by a segment of the population previously considered the most indifferent to social and political issues in the country—university students. They swiftly formed the core of a movement waging a campaign for accountability and against corruption and vowing to drive Vučić from power.Arrests of protesters, particularly students, are ongoing.Vučić has ruled Serbia for 13 years. A veteran of Serbian politics who served as information minister under the government of Slobodan Milošević in the 1990s, Vučić is well known for his ability to calibrate his positions to maintain strategic alliances with both the U.S. and its adversaries. Although the country officially remains on the path to joining the European Union and enjoys warm relations with the Trump administration, Vučić also maintains close ties with Russia and China.Vučić is conducting talks with the EU regarding the status of Kosovo, which formally declared independence from Serbia in 2008. His government sends weapons to both Ukraine and Israel and Belgrade reportedly signed a recent deal with the Israeli weapons technology firm Elbit Systems worth $1.6 billion for long-range rockets, drones, and surveillance systems. Rio Tinto—a powerful mining company that environmentalists accuse of causing pollution and other environmental damage in addition to allegations of mistreatment of workers—plans to open a mine in a lithium- and boron-rich area of Serbia called Jadar. Just over two months ago, the European Commission declared the Jadar project one of strategic importance for the EU.Vučić’s opponents call him an autocrat and dictator, claiming that corruption in the country has never been higher. They cite as an example the cost of the Paris Olympics last year—€10 billion—and compare it with the projected costs for Serbia’s EXPO, scheduled to be held in Belgrade in 2027, which is expected to cost nearly €18 billion.According to recent polls, Vučić’s popularity is on the decline and he has rejected calls for new elections, despite the country being in deep political crisis.Dušan Čavić and Dušan Šaponja, cohosts of the popular Serbian YouTube documentary news program Marka Žvaka produced this report for Drop Site News explaining how Serbia once again has found itself at the political crossroads. Get full access to Drop Site News at www.dropsitenews.com/subscribe