DW: Experts warn of fallout from Vulin sanctions

It said that Serbian analysts believe the sanctions are both a security and political issue.

European Movement in Serbia deputy chief Vladimir Medjak told DW that Vulin won’t remain head of the Security Information Agency (BIA) for long. “I think he won’t be removed quickly but in the medium term he can’t stay in the post. The BIA’s links and communication with its western counterparts are crucial in combating terrorism and organized crime,” he said and added that there will be no operational cooperation as long as the BIA is headed by someone who the US has blacklisted. According to him, that cooperation has already been frozen and the question now is how European services will react to the US decision.

Serbia’s former Ambassador to the European Union and Portugal Dusko Lopandic said the sanctions are a test of the country’s future policies. “We know that Serbia is avoiding taking sides in terms of current relations with the West and Russia. Vulin’s position is specific bearing in mind his open, long-term pro-Russian, anti-West activities and his close ties to President Vucic. This (the sanctions) are about Vulin’s biography with the criminal elements such as drug and arms trafficking. On the other hand this is a political issue as Vucic said,” Lopandic told DW.

Lopandic said the goal of the sanctions is to clear up things with Serbia’s undecided policies, that is to get Vucic out into the clear. “This is a form of pressure on Serbia to decide,” he said and added that it’s hard to say whether Vulin will be dismissed because of Vucic’s “consciously unclear policy” in situations like this and his obvious close ties with Vulin.

He sad that the crimes Vulin is being accused of and his pro-Russia views could jeopardize Serbia’s already slow European integration. “It’s indicative that US sanctions often come before European sanctions. Vulin has made an effort to attract attention: he has been calling for Serbia to give up its orientation towards the EU,” the former diplomat said and warned that Serbia’s image in the European Parliament is increasingly bleak because of its international policies and officials both of which are confusing.

Medjak said that the call by the Social Democrats in the European Parliament for sanctions is a message that Serbia has to finally start respecting EU values. “Vulin has linked the EU with the Third Reich on a number of occasions without any reaction from the EU and that is something that the EU is to blame for. Serbia’s current position was cooked up over a number of years and the EU kept its eyes shut even when someone raised the issue,” he said. According to him, the EU won’t change its position towards Serbia during this European Commission’s term in office. “I think the message from the EU and European Commission will be business as usual until then,” he said.

DW asked if the scholarships said to have been awarded by Vulin to two young Bosnian Serb women who glorified Bosnian Serb war time military chief and convicted war criminal Ratko Mladic could have any consequences for Serbia and Medjak replied that Vulin’s decision continues the demeaning of Serbia’s reputation, adding that no one really cares about European Commission reports which regularly call for an end to the glorifying of war criminals.

“There was a time when the entire Serbian public waited to hear those reports and now no one knows they have been published. The whole concept of Serbia’s EU accession has been taken off the agenda,” he said, adding that he does not believe any serious investigation of the accusations against Vulin will be launched.

Lopandic said that Vulin was an informal spokesman for Vucic while he was a cabinet minister, especially on “the radicalization of relations with Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo”. He recalled Vulin’s statements about a “Serb World” as one of the issues Vucic does not want to address in public. “It’s clear that Vulin would not have said that without permission from Vucic,” he added.

The former ambassador said that Vucic moved Vulin to the BIA, a position which does not allow him to speak in public. “Vulin has continued his clear pro-Russia activities by travelling to Moscow several times. He is clearly inflicting damage on Serbia’s international position,” Lopandic told DW.