Serbian Speaker: No Nationalization of NIS or Seizure of Property

Ana Brnabic (BETAPHOTO/MILAN OBRADOVIC)

The Serbian speaker, Ana Brnabic, said that the issue of the Oil Industry of Serbia (NIS), which has been sanctioned by the United States due to a Russian majority stake in the corporation, would be resolved “in any way other than nationalization or property seizure.”

“We do not live in a communist Serbia, and will not resort to communist methods. In other words, no nationalizations are happening. We will treat private property as sacred - there will be no confiscations, no seizures of assets. If necessary, we will overpay for NIS, but we will not take it away,” Brnabic said on the evening of Nov. 16.

According to her, these principles were clearly set on day one and were reaffirmed at the Serbian government session on Nov. 16, during which NIS was discussed. No decision was made at the session about the future of NIS because, Brnabic said, some actions by a third party were still expected, and the possibility of reaching an agreement was still open.

When asked about major decisions regarding NIS announced by some ministers, which might have been interpreted as nationalization, Brnabic said that views about a solution for NIS difference, which she believed was a good thing. The Serbian speaker noted that not everyone was pleased that the state might “overpay for NIS,” but argued that such an approach might prove beneficial in the long run, because future investors should know that Serbia would not nationalize their assets.