Serbia Is a Showcase of Authoritarian Neoliberalism
Western media coverage often presents Serbia under Aleksandar Vučić as a Russian puppet state. In reality, Vučić has been playing both sides in the new Cold War while applying the same neoliberal policies that hold sway in the West.
Serbian president Aleksandar Vučić listens to the national anthem during his inauguration ceremony in Belgrade, Serbia, on May 31, 2022. (Pedja Milosavljevic / AFP via Getty Images)
During the 1990s, the government of Slobodan Milošević led Serbia into a third Balkan war. His allies in Bosnia were responsible for a litany of war crimes, including the massacre at Srebrenica. The war left Serbia itself isolated and impoverished, and a protest movement drove Milošević from power in 2000.
Two decades later, Serbia has a president who served under Milošević and supported the wars in Croatia, Bosnia, and Kosovo. Where is the country going under the rule of Aleksandar Vučić?
Lily Lynch is a journalist who has been reporting from the Balkans over the last decade. She is the editor of Balkanist magazine and has written for publications such as New Left Review and the New Statesman. This is an edited transcript from Jacobin Radio’s Long Reads podcast. You can listen to the interview here.
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