Measures Against Kosovo & more – 4th July 2023

Dobar dan from Keswick Village! This is the Rorshok Serbia Update from the 4th of July twenty twenty-three A quick summary of what's going down in Serbia.

Amid ongoing tensions between Serbia and Kosovo, on Wednesday the 28th, the EU Commission presented a list of measures that Kosovo has to take for not de-escalating the situation in the north of Kosovo.

The EU proposed three crucial measures to Kosovo, which include the suspension of police operations near municipal buildings in the north and the scheduling of early elections in four Serb-majority municipalities. The third point focused on the source of the current tensions, which are mayors elected in the boycotted extraordinary elections that had a record low turnout of around three percent. The EU requested that the elected mayors temporarily change the facilities in which they work, since Serbs in Kosovo protested in front of municipal buildings these mayors occupied upon their election win.

On Thursday the 29th, Kosovo declared that two groups which operate in the Serb-majority north are terrorist organizations. All members of the groups, Civil Protection and North Brigade, are Serbs, and they work on protecting Serbs in Kosovo. Kosovo’s PM Kurti said that Kosovo security institutions said these two groups are a serious and direct threat to the constitutional order and security of Kosovo. Kosovo's Interior Minister Svecla said that Civil Protection and North Brigade both committed illegal acts and that now they legally have to stop operating as they are considered terrorists. Some of the acts included the attacks on NATO-led peacekeepers KFOR, the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo EULEX, and the officials of the Municipal Election Commission.

The Minister for Communities and Returns who is also a Kosovo Serb said that Kosovo’s decision to deem these groups as terrorists is premature and could have consequences for Kosovo’s relations with ethnic Serbs in the north. He added that Serbs in Kosovo are now even more scared and anxious.

In other news, Sergey Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister, announced on Friday the 30th that Russia is putting in efforts to bring Ivica Dacic, his Serbian counterpart, to Moscow on an official visit. Lavrov said that, because of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, the West forced Serbia to deny Russian aircraft to fly into Serbia’s airspace, preventing his visit to the country in twenty twenty-two. He added that Belgrade and Moscow are in regular contact and thanked President Vucic and PM Brnabic for keeping in contact with Russia’s Ambassador Alexander Bocan Harchenko.

On that note about Russia, during a meeting with French MPs, Elvira Kovacs, a Serbian Parliament European Integration Committee chairperson, said that the West does not understand why Serbia has not imposed sanctions on Russia yet. She explained that, unlike the EU member states, Serbia is still very dependent on Russian gas despite working on energy diversification. Kovacs said that Serbia is very aware of the impact of the Russian-Ukraine war and that Serbia is actively working on aligning its foreign policy with that of the EU, a crucial step for Serbia’s accession into the union.

Speaking of the West, on Thursday the 29th, US Ambassador Christopher Hill spoke at a traditional reception that celebrates the Independence Day of the US and said that the relationship between them and Serbia is complex. He said that it is important for both countries to achieve peace and security, adding that time is crucial. Hill added that the relationship between the two is built on mutual trust and values. Despite the differences between the US and Serbia, he said that mutual interests will resolve them.

Earlier that day, Hill attended a farewell ceremony for Serbian troops leaving for their first-ever deployment with US forces. President Vucic and PM Brnabic also attended the ceremony, in which Vucic asked the US to secure a dignified and peaceful life for Kosovo Serbs.

Since we mentioned Vucic, he commented on the recent events in the Republic of Srpska, Bosnia's Serb-majority part, saying that he is very concerned about their political decisions. On Tuesday the 28th, the National Assembly of the Republic of Srpska passed a law that said that the rulings of Bosnia’s Constitutional Court didn’t apply to the Assembly.

However, Christian Schmidt, Bosnia and Herzegovina's High Representative, passed a decision to annul the law in the Republic of Srpska because Bosnia and Herzegovina considered it unconstitutional. Schmidt added that Assemblies, such as the Republic of Srpska, do not have the power to pass laws in Bosnia that undermine the country's authorities. This is known as the Dayton Peace Agreement. Vucic said that he discussed the situation with Milorad Dodik, the president of the Republic of Srpska, and people of trust within the Republic. However, Dodik decided to pass the mentioned law, which Vucic deemed a brutal and serious move.

On Saturday the 1st, the ninth Serbia Against Violence protest took place in Belgrade where thousands of people showed up and rallied outside a pro-government TV station Pink. The protesters chanted "slavery" and "Vucic out", as they threw a few rolls of toilet paper at the television’s building. The protesters, who believe that Pink TV promotes a culture of violence, have called for measures against the TV station, other similar commercial broadcasters, as well as pro-government tabloids. One opposition politician said that "Pink is a factory of evil that has been spewing poison for years”. Aside from Belgrade, the protest was also held in Kraljevo, Zrenjanin, Kragujevac, and many other cities.

In some economic news, the authors of the Quarterly Monitor newsletter announced that the economic growth in Serbia in twenty twenty-three will be at only two percent, and it could be even lower. Such a low number is a result of the low agricultural season, a slower drop in inflation, and the higher energy prices. The publication said that negative trends are dominant in Serbia this year, the real average salaries dropping, the credit activity slowing down and the interest rates growing. They added that Serbia must achieve a relatively quick and perceptible decline in inflation, which will only be possible with strong coordination of the fiscal and monetary policies.

Over the past few weeks, floods have heavily affected the Toplica district of Serbia, but mainly the city of Prokuplje. Due to the heavy rainfall, the river Toplica overflowed and caused flooding in many residential and economic facilities, as well as agricultural land. The City Administration in Prokuplje said that the cost of the damage is about three million dollars. The Minister of State Administration confirmed that the state will help those in need after the recent floods, however, he appealed to the citizens to start insuring their property. He added that, unfortunately, with climate change, citizens must adjust to the weather and the conditions it brings.

Speaking of climate change, the network of women in sustainable energy WISE Serbia has announced a call for new members in which they encourage women to apply and join in until the 15th of August. WISE Serbia stated that it wants to support future female leaders, so it extended the invitation for new members to students from relevant faculties and young women in post-graduate studies. The WISE network currently consists of 150 women, and it's working on promoting active participation, representation, and a more vital role of women in energy and related sectors. Eligible to apply are women from Serbia who work in Serbia, women who are originally from Serbia but live and work abroad, and women who are from another country but are professionally engaged in Serbia. If you are interested, the form will be linked in the show notes.

On that note, the World Economic Forum published the Global Gender Gap Report oftwenty twenty-three. According to the report, Serbia ranked 38th out of the 146 countries surveyed. Compared to twenty twenty-two, Serbia fell fifteen places. The Global Gender Gap Index benchmarks the current state and progress of gender parity across several dimensions, which include economic participation and opportunity, and educational attainment, among others. Serbia achieved the lowest results in the subfield of economic participation because of a low number of female legislators, high-ranking officials, and managers. The highest-ranked country was Iceland and the lowest-ranked was Afghanistan.

In some health-related news,

About 280 COVID-19 cases were confirmed this week, with zero deaths. Compared to last week, the number of confirmed cases has decreased by around a hundred.

That’s it for this week! Thanks for joining us!

This Serbia Rorshok Update is one of the country-specific podcasts we do.

But we've always wanted to try some on other topics less tangible than countries. And we finally have!

Last week we have launched the Rorshok Ocean Update, about the 70% Earth's surface covered in salt water as well as The Rorshok Multilateral Update, covering the world's major multilateral institutions. And coming soon, the Rorshok Arctic Update. You can look for them in your podcast listening app of choice or follow the links in the show notes! Tell your friends!

Do daljnjeg, zbogom!