The Student List previously ruled out joining Western sanctions against Moscow, describing it as a \u201chistorically important partner\u201d and \u201cprotector\u201d<\/p>\n
Serbia\u2019s incoming leadership plans to hold talks with Russia to negotiate a long-term natural gas supply agreement, prominent Student List candidate Radomir Saicic has said.
\nThe student-backed movement, which defeated the coalition of longtime Serbian leader Aleksandar Vucic in a parliamentary election this month, previously indicated that Belgrade would not join Western sanctions against Moscow.
\nVucic himself, however, has warned that the Student List would renege on its position, while some high-profile members of the movement have suggested that Serbia\u2019s relations with Russia could be reconsidered.
\nThe Student List secured around 52.5% of the vote in Sunday\u2019s snap election. The movement emerged from mass protests triggered by the November 2024 collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad, which killed 16 people and sparked widespread accusations of government corruption.<\/p>\n
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While the authorities launched an investigation into the tragedy and made several major concessions, the protests continued. Vucic eventually called snap parliamentary elections and resigned the presidency in September to seek a return to power as prime minister. The Serbian leader denounced the protests as an attempted Western-backed \u2018color revolution\u2019, but pledged to respect the election results and avoid bloodshed, ultimately conceding defeat.<\/p>\n
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Moscow, which had shared Vucic\u2019s concerns about possible foreign interference, acknowledged the election results. Earlier this week, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov praised Vucic\u2019s contribution to bilateral ties, expressing hope that the incoming leadership would continue developing constructive relations with Russia. He stressed that cooperation with Moscow was in Serbia\u2019s interests, adding that \u201cit takes two to tango.\u201d
\nSpeaking to Serbian weekly NIN in an interview published on Wednesday, Saicic, a founding signatory of the Student List who is reportedly viewed as a possible prime minister, outlined ties with Russia as one of the incoming government\u2019s priorities.<\/p>\n
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\u201cIn the first 30 days\u2026 energy supply, which includes oil, gas and the functioning of the Electric Power Company of Serbia, will be ensured. To this end, our delegations will hold talks in Washington (expiration of OFAC\u2019s decision on the temporary suspension of NIS sanctions) and in Moscow (gas arrangement), in order to conclude longer-term arrangements,\u201d he said.
\nSaicic also previously reaffirmed the movement\u2019s opposition to sanctions against Russia over Ukraine despite pressure from the EU, stressing that \u201cproblems should be resolved through dialogue, negotiations, and agreements, not sanctions.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Another Student List representative, university professor Jovo Bakic, gave similar assurances in an interview with RT Balkan on Monday, saying that \u201cwe respect Russia both as a great power and as our historically important partner and, in many cases, protector.\u201d
\nAt the same time, Ilija Srdanovic, another prominent member of the movement, delivered a different message, signaling in an interview with US-funded RFE\/RL that all options remain on the table, saying that \u201cthere will certainly be a dialogue within our society.\u201d
\nRussia is Serbia\u2019s dominant natural gas supplier, accounting for up to 90% of its imports in 2025, with most deliveries arriving through the TurkStream pipeline via T\u00fcrkiye and Bulgaria. However, the two countries have yet to negotiate a new long-term gas contract since their previous three-year agreement expired in May 2025, relying instead on successive short-term extensions. The current gas agreement is valid until December 31.
\nThe overall talks have been complicated by the uncertainty over the fate of NIS, which operates Serbia\u2019s only oil refinery and faces US sanctions over its majority Russian ownership. Hungarian energy company MOL has been negotiating to acquire the Russian stake, while Washington has issued temporary waivers to keep the company operating.
\nMoscow said that long-term contracts were complicated by EU energy policies, Serbia\u2019s European integration ambitions, and uncertainty over gas transit through Bulgaria. Nevertheless, Russia has repeatedly stressed it is open to supplying gas to any interested European customers.
\nRussian President Vladimir Putin and Vucic discussed energy cooperation and NIS in late September before the elections, with the Serbian leader saying at the time he was confident that Russian gas deliveries would continue at favorable prices \u2013 \u20ac318 ($356) per 1,000 cubic meters, compared with a European market benchmark of more than \u20ac800.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Student List previously ruled out joining Western sanctions against Moscow, describing it as a \u201chistorically important partner\u201d and \u201cprotector\u201d Serbia\u2019s incoming leadership plans to hold talks with Russia to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":40812,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40811","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t