Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has hit back at British Foreign Minister David Cameron and other Western politicians, accusing them of working to destabilise the Balkans. 

Vucic made the comment amid growing Western criticism of his regime following the contested December 17 snap general election, and after Cameron described him as “Russia’s proxy” in the region. 

Speaking at an event at the Russia House in Belgrade, Vucic denied being a Russian proxy, and said his government will continue to pursue an “independent policy” towards Russia and other countries. 

He went on to imply the West is behind efforts to destabilise the region. 

"Serbia prides itself on its independence, and that is why I am disappointed by the statement of British Foreign Minister Cameron that Serbia is a protectorate of Russia, as well as the stories that we will be the ones destabilising the region," he said in comments widely reported by local media.

“There is talk that we will destabilise the region. It seems to me that many others are working on this with wholehearted help from those who are lecturing us,” he added, in an apparent reference to Western diplomats, who have been increasingly critical of Serbia since the December general election. 

Serbia has declined to join Western sanctions on Russia, despite being required to do so as an EU candidate country, and at the Russia House event, Vucic said Belgrade will continue with its “independent policy” towards Russia. 

Vucic also claimed everyone in the region is arming themselves, including Serbia. Defence Minister Milos Vucevic recently mooted the idea of a return to compulsory military service for Serbians. 

Growing frustration 

The previous day, Cameron spoke to a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee session about “growing frustration” with the Serbian government. 

“We should be clear about our views our policy, and our approach. And I think we should show a frustration, a growing frustration, with the attitude of the Serbian government,” he said following his visit to Kosovo. 

He also warned about Russian influence in Serbia and elsewhere in the region. “Russia wants to do more to destabilise the Balkans, wants to do more through its proxies, including Serbia wants to make this area and countries like Moldova less safe,” he said. 

Germany loses patience 

In Berlin, German MP Michael Roth criticised the delegation of Serbian cabinet ministers who attended the Republic Day celebrations in Bosnia & Herzegovina’s Republika Srpska, despite the event being banned by Bosnia’s Constitutional Court. 

Marking the Republic Day holiday is one of many steps the secession-minded leadership of Republika Srpska have taken to defy the authority of Bosnia’s state-level institutions. 

“Another extremely worrying sign. Serbian President Vucic and his regime don’t care about European values. They are a security risk to peace and stability in the Region,” he wrote on social network X (formerly Twitter.

“We can no longer turn a blind eye to these provocations. The EU must finally act,” he added. 

Roth made the comment the day after another MP from Germany’s ruling Social Democratic Party (SPD), Josip Juratovic, said that Serbia will face repercussions from both Germany and the EU over the conduct of the December snap general election. 

“Every democrat in the EU, USA and Canada finds the processes that took place in Serbia during the elections inadmissible. That cannot be tolerated and there cannot be silence on that. Perhaps not everyone will react strongly to everything that happened, but there will be consequences,” Juratovic told N1.

"Irregularities" in December election

He anticipates that action will be taken after the OSCE/ODHIR publishes its final report on the election. 

A report issued by the ODHIR the day after the vote said election day was “marked by numerous procedural deficiencies, including inconsistent application of safeguards during voting and counting, frequent instances of overcrowding, breaches in secrecy of the vote, and numerous instances of group voting.” 

It noted “instances of serious irregularities, including vote-buying and ballot box stuffing”. “Frequent instances of group voting, some incidents of undue influence on voters, unauthorized tracking of voter turnout, and photographing of ballots were also observed,” the report added.

In a separate incident, the president of the opposition Serbian Republican Party, Nikola Sandulovic, was brutally beaten earlier this month after he was detained for questioning by members of the secret services. 

The latest Nations in Transit report from NGO Freedom House identifies Vucic among the “illiberal leaders” in the region, in countries where the ruling party “sought to manipulate their electorates, undermine checks and balances, and hide their fundamentally antidemocratic actions behind a pro forma adherence to constitutional and legal procedure”.