Picula: Serbia in Undeclared State of Emergency, As Such Cannot Join EU

Tonino Picula (BETAPHOTO/MILOS MISKOV)

European Parliament Rapporteur for Serbia Tonino Picula has told the Croatian media that Serbia has been in an undeclared state of emergency, with state institutions largely not functioning, for quite some time.

“I think that Serbia has, not only in the past two months but longer, been existing in a state of emergency. It hasn’t been declared, but as time passes, all the protagonists have through their actions demonstrated that Serbia is in a situation where standard mechanisms, which help resolve internal conflict in democracies, do not exist,” Picula told N1 Croatia on Aug. 21.

Asked about the European Union’s attitude towards President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic, Picula said that “at the moment, the EU has neither the motive nor the capacity to take a different stance toward Aleksandar Vucic’s malignant regime.”

“Unlike [with regards to] Ukraine, there is a lack of unity in the EU which would exact pressure and lead to a compromise or perhaps snap elections [in Serbia]. The European Parliament is, in that regard, in its highly critical attitude toward Serbia, alone in the sea of European institutions,” Picula added.

The rapporteur previously told Croatian Nova TV’s daily newscast that none of the relevant factors in the European Union have any lingering illusions about who President Vucic is or what type of rule he employs. In such a state, Serbia cannot become an EU member, Picula concluded.

“The question is what kind of stance should be taken on the alternative, on those who will potentially come tomorrow. Right now, that is an unpredictable political drama. I think that Vucic’s regime has legality, but those who are protesting are gaining legitimacy,” said Picula.

In his opinion, Croatia must significantly harden its stance on “all the political manipulations of Vucic’s regime, which has been arresting and deporting Croatian citizens every so often.”

Commenting on the wartime portrait he posted on social media to commemorate the anniversary of Operation Storm – the 1995 operation in which 200,000 Serbs were driven out of Croatia not long before the war official ended – Picula said he was somewhat “surprised by the eruption of negative opinions” and that he had absolutely no intention of provoking anyone.

“The 30th anniversary of an internationally recognized [military] operation, owing to which Croatia commenced its modern path, was simply an opportunity for me to address those with whom I shared those experiences and the public at large,” Picula explained.

According to him, Serbia’s attitude toward those times and events is, in a way, the root of what is currently happening in the country. “It is clear that, at the moment, Serbia is a country which in many ways cannot decide on its future but there is a consensus on how the past should be interpreted, which is exactly what happened following my post,” the rapporteur stated.