Serbia: Europe is “sleepwalking” towards economic ruin economy

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said that Europe is moving “as if sleepwalking” towards economic ruin due to self-satisfaction and poor productivity, at a time when Vucic is turning his country into a major gateway for China on the European continent, after returning from Beijing with investment pledges to Serbia exceeding one billion dollars.

The Serbian President added, in an interview with Bloomberg yesterday, Monday, that there are many obstacles that complicate the flow of investments between Europe, China and the United States, considering that protectionism “will kill Europe in the end,” and that the way the Europeans work will be “the most difficult and biggest issue” facing the continent.

During the 12 years of Vucic’s presidency, Serbia became one of China’s main entry points into Europe, with billions of dollars pumped into sectors ranging from mining to human-like robots, and Chinese President Xi Jinping described relations between his country and Serbia as a “steel friendship.”

Bloomberg says that despite these economic relations between Serbia and China, President Vucic still affirms his desire for his country to join the European Union, at a time when the popularity of the European bloc membership file among Serbs has declined to its lowest level, reaching 35% this year.

Vucic’s bet

Vucic, 56, is betting that his focus on creating jobs and wealth with the help of China and other allies such as the UAE will keep him in power, despite protests led mainly by student groups against his rule, which are now in their second year.

The Serbian president said that his country “will do its job” regarding the criteria for joining the European Union, but he added, “At the same time, we have to take care of ourselves. We cannot wait forever,” noting that Serbia has so far obtained about 8 billion euros (about 8.6 billion dollars) from direct Chinese investments, and a similar amount in the form of loans for the benefit of Chinese contractors chosen by Belgrade to implement infrastructure projects.

Although he maintains relations with Russia, Vucic expressed his regret at the stalemate in the war between Russia and Ukraine, and said that the United States may invest up to $15 billion in Serbia in various energy and construction projects, without providing details.

The Serbian president’s government has been facing internal protests since an umbrella collapsed at a train station in November 2024 on a track that Chinese companies were developing. Vucic said in the interview with Bloomberg that his country will hold parliamentary and presidential elections this year, ruling out running for a new presidential term after the end of his current term in 2027, but he did not rule out returning to the position of prime minister.