A group of social-democrat MEPs sent a letter to European Commissioner Oliver Várhelyi warning that the political situation in Serbia is critical.

“Democracy, strongly promoted by the European Union and its member states, is now endangered by Serbian leaders and their statements,” the MEPs said in the letter which N1 had access to. The letter called for a fairer electoral process with greater scrutiny in order to prevent corruption and falsified results.

“It is crucial that the European Commission is not perceived to be active during the electoral campaign and thereby in support of any political party. As such, we would suggest that there are no more public signing ceremonies by EU officials of grants, loans or opening of new projects with members of the Serbian government in the pre-electoral period,” it said.

The MEPs warned that the Serbian authorities took advantage of the coronavirus situation to reschedule the parliamentary elections without consulting the opposition and that there will be no European Parliament observers with only a limited OSCE mission.

The letter said that the information currently presented by the Serbian government and other institutions paints a distorted image of the election process. It recalled that the majority of the “relevant opposition” is going to boycott the elections adding that a just agreement with the government could have prevented this and warned that of almost complete control of the media by the ruling parties.

“We cannot neglect the strategic and geopolitical role of Serbia, crucial for the stability of the entire Western Balkan region and need to act on the front line to restore a functioning democratic system in Serbia,” the MEPs said.