Authors

Erwin Erhardt¹;  ¹ University of Cincinnati, United States

Discussion

This summer, while preparing a paper on the young Serbian students who travelled to Strasbourg to visit the Council of Europe and European Parliament, I became increasing away of the political contradictions embodied within the Serbian President, Aleksandar Vučić.
Prior to presenting this research at the European Studies Conference at the European Studies Conference in Omaha, Nebraska, I had come to the conclusion in my mind that Vučić was a 21st century Machiavellian ruler.
Although Vučić is losing support among younger Serbians, he as positioned himself to be on rather remarkable good terms with Russia, ,China, and the European Union. At home, the older generation of Serbia seem to have maintained a decent level of respect for their President. The younger people—especially university student in the nation--seem to have reached the breaking point with him. Indeed, it was the collapse of the concrete canopy at Novi Sad Train Station (killing 16 people) on November 1, 2024 that proved to be the tipping point for Serbian youth against the government. With the Vučić’s regime oppression, human rights violations, censorship, and corruption, the young people of Serbia thought it time to act.
Internationally, Vučić still seems to have Serbia on a path to full membership in the E.U. While the challenges of integration still hamper the desired outcome, he has maintained excellent relationships with Vladimir Putin of Russia, along with Jinping Xi of China. In fact, Vučić has utilized China’s Belt and Road Initiative to help construct a better transportation system in Serbia.
To illustrate his Machiavellian behavior, while the Serbian University students were on their way to protest the corrosion of democracy and the corruption of his administration in Strasbourg, he simultaneously went on a state visit to France, where President Macron provided full state military honors welcome with a warm embrace for the Balkan Leader.
This paper will explore the Machiavellian machinations of the Serbian President, and seek to discovered how he keeps external political entities in a constant state of disequilibrium.