After a working dinner with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the President of the European Council, Ant\u00f3nio Costa, Serbian President Aleksandar Vu\u010di\u0107 spoke to the media\u2014among whom N1\u2019s 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.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“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,” Vu\u010di\u0107 said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, the President of the European Commission did not mention in her post on platform X that she discussed the protests in Serbia with Vu\u010di\u0107. She did not publicly comment on Vu\u010di\u0107\u2019s claims regarding the sound cannon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Von der Leyen wrote that an important meeting was held with Vu\u010di\u0107 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\u2019s future is in the European Union,” Ursula von der Leyen stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“I told Ursula and Ant\u00f3nio to send whoever they want, that we are ready to show them everything and prove that it didn\u2019t happen,” Vu\u010di\u0107 added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“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\u2014so they can also say that something was used somewhere,” Vu\u010di\u0107 stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“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,” Vu\u010di\u0107 added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\u2019s future” and that this will “become evident in the near future.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The conversation was cordial, substantial, open, responsible, and serious. We covered many topics, with the key one being Serbia\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vu\u010di\u0107 stated that Serbia\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He also said they discussed the economy, investments, the EU\u2019s interest in mineral resources, joint projects with Serbia, and the defense industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vu\u010di\u0107 also stated that representatives of the state wanted to talk to the Rector of the University of Belgrade, Professor Vladan \u0110oki\u0107, but that he refused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Responding to journalists’ questions in Brussels, Vu\u010di\u0107 said that the state “will not pay salaries to slackers” and accused rectors and deans of participating in organizing student blockades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The government, in every term, pays salaries and pensions, but for work, not for idleness. Let\u2019s not get into the fact that the organizers of the protests are rectors and many deans. If you haven\u2019t worked, you can\u2019t 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,” Vu\u010di\u0107 said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n