Serbia’s EU course turns into question of life and death

Just days before crucial parliamentary elections (11 May), the question of Serbia’s future accession to the EU has become an issue of existential importance as the country’s President Boris Tadic has received a death threat over his pro-EU stance.

A threatening letter was sent to Tadic following his signature of a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the EU, considered to be the first step towards membership of the bloc (EURACTIV 30/04/08). It accused the president of being a “proven traitor to the Serb nation” and threatens him with a “bullet to the forehead,” the Belgrade daily Blic reports. 

“You, traitor, should have in mind that the treason of the nation and the state is the weightiest criminal act and that is exactly what you have been doing,” Blic cited the letter as stating, which was most likely written by a Serbian nationalist radical. 

Tadic refused to comment, but urged politicians in Serbia not to support “the evil blood” in the election campaign. 

This type of threat is not new to Serbian politics and should not be taken lightly, as Serbia has a sad history of political murder. Pro-Western Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic was assassinated by a bullet to the chest in 2003. 

Opposition between the country’s pro-European politicians and hardline nationalist parties is currently at its highest since the breakaway Kosovar province unilaterally declared its independence from Serbia on 17 February 2008 – with the backing of several EU countries.

A recent poll conducted by the Strategic Marketing agency showed Serbia’s nationalist Radical Party slightly ahead of Tadic’s pro-European bloc (33.2% to 31.5%), with the nationalist coalition of Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica ranked third (13.8%). 

A high number of voters are still undecided, largely due to “conflicting messages” following Serbia’s signature of the SAA, the agency said. The nationalist opposition has announced it will annul the deal if it wins next Sunday’s elections over fears that the signature implies de facto recognition of Kosovo’s declaration of independence, to which all Serbian parties are opposed. 

The EU had strongly pushed for the SAA to be signed, hoping it would boost the pro-European camp of President Tadic and Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic, who considers the upcoming elections to be a referendum on the EU. 

If Tadic is defeated, the Union fears that Serbia could reverse its pro-European course and align itself with its traditional ally Russia, which has endorsed Kostunica as its favourite candidate. 

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