Russian newspaper on Serbia: Vučić responded quickly, taking the Russian service’s warning seriously

The statement by the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) of the Russian Federation that Europeans intend to organize a “Serbian Maidan” on November 1 has caused a storm of reactions in Serbia, writes Genadij Sysojev, a correspondent for the Russian newspaper Kommersant in the Balkans.

President Aleksandar Vučić thanked the SVR for the warning and expressed his conviction that “the last attempt at a violent takeover of power will certainly be carried out.”

Opposition leaders claim that the president is lying to the Russians that the West wants to overthrow him, and to the Americans and Europeans that the Russians want to overthrow him. Experts are convinced that mass protests are inevitable on the anniversary of the tragedy in Novi Sad, Kommersant reports.

They add that Vučić responded extremely quickly to the warning from the Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation, without waiting for his return from Tokyo, where he was on an official visit.

Earlier this week, the Russian newspaper SVR reported that the European Union was behind the months of unrest in Serbia and that on November 1—the first anniversary of the tragedy in Novi Sad, which sparked the protests—there would be an attempt at a “Serbian Maidan” with the aim of “bring an obedient leadership loyal to Brussels to power in the largest Balkan country.”

The Serbian president thanked SVR for the warning and stressed that “Serbian security services will certainly contact them in this regard.”

“This is one of the most powerful foreign policy services, and we always carefully monitor their statements, analyze them, and take certain measures,” explained Aleksandar Vučić, adding: “I have no doubt that those who organized the ‘color revolution’ in Serbia will not give up so easily. Too much money has been invested, and so a final attempt at a violent takeover is underway. We have been prepared for this for a long time.”

Accusations of organizing a “Serbian Maidan” from abroad have been rejected by the European Union and by the opposition in Serbia itself.

“There is no foreign plan, no Maidan, and no conspiracy. There is only the will of the citizens of Serbia to fight corruption, theft, and dictatorship,” said the Democratic Party.

The leader of the Freedom and Justice Party, Dragan Đilas, accused the president of “lying to the Russians that the Americans are undermining him, and to the Americans and Europeans that the Russians are undermining him.”

According to him, “while the pro-government media reports that the European Union, European countries, and their intelligence services are behind the protests, the Serbian ambassador to Washington, Dragan Šutanovac, is walking the halls of the State Department on Vučić’s orders, convincing Americans that Russian special services are behind the civil uprising—and Vučić himself is telling the same story to European politicians.”

“The truth has nothing to do with what the president says to the West, nor with what he says to the East. The authoritarian and corrupt regime is being overthrown exclusively by the citizens of Serbia,” said Dragan Đilas.

Serbian students, who have been organizing mass protests for eleven months, also responded to the SVR’s warning. They sent a message to the president in Russian: “Our demands are clear: call elections, do not use the services of other countries for personal popularity – you will be beaten to death.”

Many Serbian analysts emphasize that intelligence services are not needed to predict mass protests on November 1—the anniversary of the tragedy in Novi Sad, when a railway station canopy collapsed and killed 16 people.

“The anniversary of the tragedy in Novi Sad is approaching, and absolutely everyone in Serbia knows this. Therefore, neither foreign nor domestic intelligence services are needed to inform citizens that various rallies and protests will certainly take place on that day,” says Marko Miletić, editor of the popular Serbian portal Mašina.rs.

“In this context, it is completely irrelevant whether the warnings from foreign services refer to a ‘color revolution’ or ‘strengthening Russian influence’ – the only thing that matters to the ruling regime is that this can be used as an excuse to repress its own citizens.”

/www.danas.rs