VUČIĆ FROM BRUSSELS: EU will declare Jadar as its strategic project in seven days! (VIDEO)

After a working dinner with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the President of the European Council, António Costa, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić spoke to the media—among whom N1’s team was absent due to a lack of invitation to their European correspondent. He stated that the Serbian authorities did not use a sound cannon, that they “have nothing to hide,” and that they are “completely open to having this examined in every possible way.”

“I told my hosts that there was no sound cannon, that we are ready to have this verified in any way, and that we will respond to the European Court of Human Rights, even though the use of such devices is not banned anywhere in Europe,” Vučić said.

However, the President of the European Commission did not mention in her post on platform X that she discussed the protests in Serbia with Vučić. She did not publicly comment on Vučić’s claims regarding the sound cannon.

Von der Leyen wrote that an important meeting was held with Vučić and that Serbia must fulfill its obligations regarding reforms for EU accession, particularly in terms of media freedom, the fight against corruption, and electoral reform. “Serbia’s future is in the European Union,” Ursula von der Leyen stated.

“I told Ursula and António to send whoever they want, that we are ready to show them everything and prove that it didn’t happen,” Vučić added.

He also commented on the petition launched by the “Kreni-Promeni” movement, calling for an independent international investigation to be conducted by the United Nations.

“The United Nations? Welcome, people. Serbia is an open country, we are ready to show everything and have absolutely nothing to hide. Anyone who wants to come and check, that is my invitation to the European Parliament as well. The opposition has its loyal followers in the European Parliament who will vote for anything, even that the Earth is flat—so they can also say that something was used somewhere,” Vučić stated.

He added that he believes Von der Leyen and Costa “could see how much patience” the Serbian authorities have shown in their effort to maintain complete peace, to avoid showing any nervousness, and to refrain from using force.

“We will continue to act in this manner, aiming for Serbia to move forward, for the situation to stabilize, for children to return to school, and for the senseless blockades to end,” Vučić added.

He stated that he was “very satisfied” with his discussions with the highest EU officials, expressing his belief that the meeting was “very important for Serbia’s future” and that this will “become evident in the near future.”

“The conversation was cordial, substantial, open, responsible, and serious. We covered many topics, with the key one being Serbia’s European future. I stated that Serbia will be absolutely dedicated to this goal, even more than before, but I also said that we will soon decide on forming a new government or calling new elections,” he said.

He added that they also discussed the political situation in the region, the need to maintain stability and peace, the economic situation, and “what Serbia must do in the field of the rule of law to be able to open the remaining clusters in the accession negotiations.”

Vučić stated that Serbia’s goal is to open clusters 3 and 2 by the end of the year and to accelerate its progress towards the EU, but added that the country itself must do a lot to achieve this.

“I believe that in the next month, significant progress can be made regarding laws on electoral rolls, the Regulatory Body for Electronic Media (REM), and media laws, because this is in the interest of everyone in our country,” he stated.

He also said they discussed the economy, investments, the EU’s interest in mineral resources, joint projects with Serbia, and the defense industry.

“The State Wanted to Talk to Rector Đokić, But He Refused”

Vučić also stated that representatives of the state wanted to talk to the Rector of the University of Belgrade, Professor Vladan Đokić, but that he refused.

Responding to journalists’ questions in Brussels, Vučić said that the state “will not pay salaries to slackers” and accused rectors and deans of participating in organizing student blockades.

“The government, in every term, pays salaries and pensions, but for work, not for idleness. Let’s not get into the fact that the organizers of the protests are rectors and many deans. If you haven’t worked, you can’t get paid for not working, no matter how many times you are a rector, nor can you threaten us with a student baton or whatever else,” Vučić said.

According to him, some rectors and deans do not want the situation to be resolved or for students to return to their faculties because they fear responsibility and dream of color revolutions.

On the Jadar Project

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić announced in Brussels that the European Union (EU) will declare the lithium mining project in Serbia, Jadar, as its strategic project outside the EU within the next seven or eight days.

“These people are not stupid; they are just malicious and somewhat illiterate, always rushing. They don’t know that today, only projects within the EU were mentioned. And in seven or eight days, the EU will announce ‘Jadar’ as its strategic project outside the EU. Once again, they lied, once again, they rushed somewhere,” Vučić stated.

The European Commission today, for the first time, established a list of 47 strategic projects aimed at boosting domestic capacities for strategic raw materials, thereby strengthening the European value chain for raw materials and diversifying supply sources.