"To Leave to Stay": German Media Analyze Vučić's Strategy

German media outlets are dissecting Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić's announcement to step down from his presidential role, with headlines like "Vučić's Strategic Withdrawal" and "To Leave to Stay" suggesting a calculated political maneuver. The Süddeutsche Zeitung reports that Vučić appears to be preparing for a "new duty," a move that contrasts sharply with the high expectations set when he first took office in 2014. At that time, he pledged to bring Serbia closer to the European Union, combat corruption, and improve relations with Kosovo. However, his tenure has been marked by a crackdown on media freedoms, a decline in the rule of law, and accusations of his party's links to organized crime.

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Vučić's strategic withdrawal

Despite his stated intention to leave the presidency, Vučić is not expected to exit politics entirely. Statements from party officials, including Miloš Vučević, the leader of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), and Ana Brnabić, the Speaker of the National Assembly, indicate hopes that Vučić will accept a nomination for prime minister. Such a move would align him with an "autocratic tradition of strategic function swapping," a tactic previously employed by Vladimir Putin in Russia and Milorad Dodik in Bosnia and Herzegovina's Republika Srpska entity.

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To Leave to Stay

The political landscape in Serbia remains uncertain, with domestic polling institutes predicting a tight race in the upcoming snap elections. The SNS faces a challenge from a student-led movement that has been organizing large-scale protests for over a year and a half. This opposition movement may benefit from a public sentiment for change, reminiscent of the situation in Hungary before Viktor Orbán's era ended.

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it is obvious that he is preparing for a new duty