Serbian election winners plan gas talks with Russia

The Student List previously ruled out joining Western sanctions against Moscow, describing it as a “historically important partner” and “protector” Serbia’s incoming leadership plans to hold talks with Russia to negotiate a long-term natural gas supply agreement, prominent Student List candidate Radomir Saicic has said. The student-backed movement, which defeated the coalition of longtime Serbian leader Aleksandar Vucic in a parliamentary election this month, previously indicated that Belgrade would not join Western sanctions against Moscow. Vucic himself, however, has warned that the Student List would renege on its position, while some high-profile members of the movement have suggested that Serbia’s relations with Russia could be reconsidered. The Student List secured around 52. 5% of the vote in Sunday’s snap election.

The movement emerged from mass protests triggered by the November 2024 collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad, which killed 16 people and sparked widespread accusations of government corruption. Europe’s voters keep throwing leaders out. Who has the answers? While the authorities launched an investigation into the tragedy and made several major concessions, the protests continued. Vucic eventually called snap parliamentary elections and resigned the presidency in September to seek a return to power as prime minister. The Serbian leader denounced the protests as an attempted Western-backed ‘color revolution’, but pledged to respect the election results and avoid bloodshed, ultimately conceding defeat. Serbia will not impose Russia sanctions – election winner’s rep to RT Moscow, which had shared Vucic’s concerns about possible foreign interference, acknowledged the election results. Earlier this week, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov praised…