On December 16, the Guardian reported that large-scale protests had halted the Anglo-Australian mining conglomerate Rio Tinto’s plan to construct a $2.4 billion lithium mine in Serbia’s Jadar Valley. Opponents of the government also managed to force Belgrade to back down on its plans to pass two controversial pieces of government legislation. The environmental movement thwarted plans for a law that would have made it easier for the state to confiscate private land and hand it over to investors, as well as legislation making referenda against unpopular government initiatives more difficult to win.

With presidential, parliamentary, and local elections all scheduled to take place on April 3, the prospect of escalating environmental protests, which blocked icy highways and bridges over the winter, threatens to become a major nuisance for President Aleksandar Vučić. Despite the protests, the right-wing Serbian Progressive Party, which Vučić heads, still holds a commanding lead in national opinion polls, with the support of more than 50 percent of voters. At the local level, including the capital, where the governing coalition is made up of the Progressive and Socialist parties, this lead is much thinner.

Temporarily giving in to the demands of the environmental protestors was a logical move. Vučić and Prime Minister Ana Brnabić have both since explicitly stated that their government does not intend to halt the Rio Tinto project. The fact that there is still great strength of feeling around Rio Tinto makes this move a risky one.