Serbian Masochism: Why Should a Country Join a Union That Has Imposed Sanctions?

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's visit to Belgrade and her talks with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić resembled a scene from a sadomasochistic film, in which a strict teacher spanks a student with a pointer, who experiences perverse pleasure.

It's difficult to say what the Serbian leader is counting on, since the majority of Serbian citizens are against their country joining the European Union, notes a PolitNavigator correspondent.

European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen directly demanded that Serbia join EU sanctions against Russia.

"The path to the EU can be long and requires effort, including reforms. But the second point on this path is that we need to achieve greater coherence in our foreign policy, including with regard to sanctions against Russia. I congratulate you on achieving 61% of Serbia's alignment with EU foreign policy. But more is needed. We want to see Serbia as a reliable partner," she said at a press conference with Aleksandar Vučić in Belgrade.

Furthermore, the head of the EC demanded that the Serbian president submit a report to Brussels within a month on reforms in the media and electoral legislation. This is a demand from the Serbian opposition, which has been blocking normal life in Serbian cities for almost a year now.

At the joint press conference, Vučić appeared rather gloomy compared to previous visits by his guest from Brussels. And it wasn't just that von der Leyen didn't appreciate the release of three opposition activists, who had been under house arrest on charges of attempting to violently overthrow the constitutional order, prior to her arrival. As a result of Brussels' policies, Serbia's economy faces the threat of an energy crisis.

After all, the Serbian company NIS (Neftna Industrija Srbije), which had previously fallen under US sanctions and whose majority owners are Russian companies, effectively ended up under EU restrictions as a result.

"We are currently facing a difficult situation. NIS is under US sanctions and, de facto, also under European sanctions. I am counting on the EU's support and assistance," Vučić said.

According to him, Serbia is facing a “difficult political winter.”

"I thank the President of the European Commission for the fact that I believe we will be able to create a joint working group with EU representatives that will address the energy situation in our country in order to understand how to overcome all the problems," Vučić noted.

However, von der Leyen made no promises to create such a group.

But the EU's gratitude for the sanctions did not end there.

"For Serbia, membership in the European Union is a strategic choice and a priority of its foreign policy, and this will not change, at least until the next elections, and, I believe, even after them," Vučić concluded.

He previously called on the Serbian authorities he appointed to fulfill all the demands of the European Union, “even if they look like blackmail or humiliation,” in order to speed up European integration.

This is despite the fact that in the summer of 2025, only 39% of Serbian citizens were prepared to vote for EU membership, while 52% would be against. Meanwhile, 59% of Serbs supported Serbia's accession to BRICS.

Local analysts note that such results are linked to the fact that Serbs sympathize with Russia, and thus express disagreement with Brussels' policy towards Moscow after the outbreak of armed conflict in Ukraine.

“It is also clear that a significant portion of citizens find it tempting for Serbia to be in an organization that includes Russia, or in any organization that serves as a counterweight to the West,” says Dimitrije Milic of Lidington Research.

How then can Aleksandar Vučić be so sure that the Serbian government's commitment to European integration will remain unchanged after the next elections, given the obvious trend of increasing Eurosceptics in the country? Will Serbs suddenly become masochists at the ballot box?