"First Orban in Hungary, and now Vucic in Serbia: Vladimir Putin has started to lose his authoritarian friends", notes Florian Bieber, Austrian professor of history and politics of Southeast Europe at the University of Graz. In an interview with the German "Tagesspiegel" he predicts that the Kremlin boss will now be even more isolated, although no significant and immediate change in foreign policy can be expected from Serbia.
"A document that expresses regressive thinking"
A good expert on the Balkans, Michael Martens, in turn, notes in the „Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ)" that foreign policy did not play any role in the election campaign of the „Student List". And what is known about the foreign policy platform of the student movement in Serbia, in his opinion, does not bode well for the region. Martens explains that on key foreign policy issues, the program of the winners of the elections in Serbia is completely in the spirit of Serbian nationalism, preached by Vučić and his deposed „Serbian Progressive Party“ (SPP). This is a "document based on regressive thinking, and any attempt to implement it would inevitably ignite conflicts in the region," says Michael Martens.
According to him, it is not surprising that the students do not recognize the independence of Kosovo either. Such a position is enshrined in the preamble to the Serbian Constitution, but the students go even further: it seems that they are not inclined to recognize the very existence of the Kosovo state. Their program, published on the movement's website, states that they will consistently oppose the unilaterally declared independence of the "so-called republic" Kosovo.
Abolition of Kosovo's statehood and no sanctions against Russia?
This looks like an intention to abolish Kosovo's statehood, Martens points out, and draws attention to what is written in the students' program that, with regard to Kosovo, they will rely on the “traditional partnership“ with Russia and are against imposing sanctions against Moscow: “The Republic of Serbia will maintain its principled position of not imposing restrictive measures against the Russian Federation“. At the same time, the students are calling for a “comprehensive strategic partnership“ with China, which should even be expanded, says the FAC publication.
The student movement also has a clear position regarding Israel. Its program states that the Serbian people “know very well what it means to be a victim of genocide and ethnic cleansing“. It also talks about a “systematic attempt to destroy the Palestinian people“, in which they will not be complicit.
"A view of history that is full of blank spots"