Serbian Speaker: Opposition Proposal on Lithium to be Included in the Agenda

Ana Brnabic (BETAPHOTO/AMIR HAMZAGIC)

The Serbian speaker, Ana Brnabic, said on Sept. 11 that the opposition's proposal to ban the exploration and mining of lithium and boron will be included in the agenda, although she did not specify when. She referred to it as a "ban on mining" and called the proposal "superficial and stupid."

"People need to know, when Rio Tinto discovered lithium, or more specifically jadarite, they didn’t initially request lithium exploration. Ultimately, even if such a proposal were adopted, it’s highly questionable whether it would apply to jadarite," Brnabic said in an interview with Pink TV.

The Serbian speaker added that jadarite was not the same as lithium or boron, but the two were extracted from the mineral, raising a question whether a ban on boron and lithium exploration would even apply to jadarite. Brnabic also said that the opposition was only using lithium as a political issue, rather than an environmental concern, in an attempt to overthrow Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

The president of the Freedom and Justice Party, Dragan Djilas, said on Sept. 11 that a move by the opposition for the Parliament of Serbia to hold an emergency session was clear, and that the purpose was to ban lithium mining, along with applied boron and lithium exploration, in the territory of Serbia.