Evangelical leaders in Serbia gave cautious responses to President Aleksandar Vučić's announcement that he will resign in the coming weeks, following more than a year of student-led protests against his government.
Vučić, who has ruled Serbia as president or prime minister for 12 years, announced June 27 at a pro-government rally in Belgrade that he would step down and call presidential and parliamentary elections. The announcement came just ahead of Vidovdan, a national holiday.
"I will be president for only a couple more weeks, and then I will resign," Vučić reportedly said. "These are my last days and weeks as the republic's president. After that, I will resign."
He also warned that opponents "will destroy our country within one or three years" — a remark sources said was directed at anti-government protesters.
The protests began after a roof collapsed at Novi Sad railway station on Nov. 1, 2024, killing 16 people. Corruption allegations quickly surfaced over the government's role in approving the construction work. Demonstrations spread to cities across Serbia, including Belgrade, and forced the closure of higher education institutions for four months.
Prof. Tatjana Samardžija, assistant professor at the University of Belgrade, was skeptical of Vučić's motives.
"As anything else, the moves of Aleksandar Vučić are directed by his Western puppeteers, so we'll see," Samardžija told Christian Daily International. "At any rate, he wants to perpetuate his reign using the Putin strategy — alternative president-prime minister switch. We can only pray to God to shorten this terrible probation, as not many individuals use their brain and heart to decide on elections. Corruption is horrible. As for students, Vučić and his fake opposition do their best to dismantle their unity and destroy their credibility."
The Rev. Dusan Beredi, a pastor in Novi Sad, said the situation has been primarily electoral and political rather than a broad civic protest movement, and that his own involvement has been as an individual citizen, not as a pastor.
"At the moment, the protests have largely shifted into a political phase, focusing on the possibility of new elections," Beredi said. "If President Vučić were to step down, many expect it would be in order to run again under a new political arrangement rather than to leave politics altogether."
