Belgrade experiences hectic days of protests after the outbreak General election which gave the populist victory Aleksandar Vucic. Thousands of Serbs gathered in Belgrade on Monday to demand the release of protesters who were arrested the previous day at a march denouncing voter fraud in the Balkan country's recent parliamentary and local elections. Russiaa country that still enjoys big influence in the small Balkan state, has accused the West of inciting and encouraging the mobilizations.
This is the eighth consecutive night of protests, which unlike those on Sunday were peaceful, although they began with road blockades in the capital. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic claimed Sunday's unrest was planned and Russia accused Western powers of interference, suggesting they could be behind the outbreak of violence.
According to the electoral commission, the December 17 elections brought victory to Vucic's party (SNS, nationalist right) with 46.7% of the vote. But the opposition, which went to the polls with the slogan “Serbia against violence” and won 23.5% of the vote, denounced a series of frauds.
Observers confirm the suspicion
A preliminary report from an international observer mission confirmed these suspicions and listed cases of “vote buying” and “ballot box stuffing” at several polling stations.
“It is obvious that the West as a whole is trying to destabilize the situation in Serbia,” accused Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova. “Attempts by third parties, including from abroad, to cause unrest in Belgrade are obvious,” said Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov. The EU and Germany in particular described the allegations by a country that wants to join the European Union as “unacceptable”.