US may impose new sanctions on Serbia— Vucic
(MENAFN) Serbia may soon lose its exemption from US sanctions targeting its energy sector, potentially triggering a fuel crisis in the country, according to statements made by President Aleksandar Vucic on Sunday.
Vucic noted that Washington had issued several temporary waivers exempting Belgrade from sanctions placed in January on NIS, Serbia’s main oil company, which is majority-owned by Russia’s Gazprom and Gazprom Neft. The latest exemption, issued on October 1, is valid for only one week, and Vucic said he believes it is unlikely that a further extension will be granted.
Speaking on national television, the Serbian president explained that the only viable option to secure continued oil supplies might be nationalizing NIS—a move he said he is hesitant to take.
“We have been working on it for 10 months, we are trying to find a solution and still there is none,” he said. If sanctions are enforced, he warned, fuel prices would rise, though he stressed the situation would not be as severe as during the 1990s, when fuel shortages forced citizens to rely on bottles and buckets to store gasoline.
Serbia has long walked a diplomatic tightrope, maintaining close ties with Russia while also pursuing European Union membership. However, its refusal to fully align with EU foreign policy has drawn criticism from both Brussels and Washington, especially regarding its continued energy relationship with Moscow—a historic ally.
The Serbian government has also accused Western powers of backing mass anti-government protests in recent months, further straining ties with the West.
Concerns over energy sanctions are not unique to Serbia. Several EU nations, including Hungary and Slovakia, have expressed frustration over pressure from Brussels to stop purchasing Russian crude. Earlier in the year, tensions escalated when Ukrainian strikes targeted parts of the Druzhba pipeline network, a critical channel for oil deliveries to Eastern Europe.
To diversify supplies and reduce vulnerability, Hungary and Serbia announced in January that they would accelerate plans to connect Serbian consumers to the Druzhba system.
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