Croatian President Cancels Brdo-Brion Summit/Reason, Statements by Aleksandar Vučić

2026-03-31 11:02:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Croatian President Cancels Brdo-Brion Summit/Reason, Statements by Aleksandar

Croatian President Zoran Milanovic has canceled the Brdo-Brijuni Process meeting, which was scheduled to be held in May, stressing that the conditions currently do not exist for Serbian President Aleksandar Vu?i? to visit Croatia.

“The statements and political actions of the President of Serbia, which we have witnessed in recent days and weeks, are completely contrary to the purpose of the Brdo-Brijuni Process, harm interstate relations and endanger peace and stability in the Southeast European region,” Milanovic said on March 30 in a written statement.

Vu?i? responded that the Croatian president did not need to cancel the meeting because of him, but was able to invite "his friends from Pristina and Tirana."

"He is absolutely right, I have no place there ," Vu?i? declared, adding that no one from Croatia will tell him what to say, Tanjug agency reported.

The Brdo-Brion Process is a regional initiative that brings together the leaders of the Western Balkan countries and was initiated in 2013 with the aim of promoting cooperation and accelerating the region's European integration.

What did Vu?i? declare?

Vu?i?, after the local elections in Serbia on March 29, declared that he would "verify reports from security agencies about the possible influence of foreign countries on the electoral process" , citing "logistical support from a neighboring state".

"They hit us from the region even today. You could see what they were doing from Zagreb and how great their efforts were. In Kula [a municipality in northern Serbia] there were more license plates from Zagreb than from the surrounding municipalities. And I'm not just talking about the logistics of transport, but first and foremost about the media," the Serbian president said.

After anti-government protests erupted over the deaths of 16 people in Novi Sad in late 2024, authorities in Serbia have repeatedly accused Croatian secret services of organizing the demonstrations, accusations that officials in Zagreb have vehemently denied.

Milanovic's office announced that Croatia and Slovenia, as members of the European Union, have initiated the Brdo-Brijuni Process with the aim of improving mutual cooperation and accelerating the European integration process of the countries of Southeast Europe.

As co-chair of Brdo-Brion, Milanovic has informed the heads of participating states that he has decided to cancel the planned meeting in Croatia.

In addition to the presidents of Croatia, Slovenia, and Serbia, the leaders of Kosovo, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, and Albania also participate in the Brdo-Brijuni Process.

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said he was unaware of Milanovic's decision to cancel the summit. Speaking about Vu?i?'s statements, he said they were "two false concepts."

"One is that Croatia is interfering in Serbia's internal political developments and that it is one of the instigators or co-organizers of the 'orange revolution'. The other is that [Croatia] is creating a military alliance with Albania and Kosovo against Serbia. Both of these issues are completely incorrect ," he told reporters.

Kosovo, Croatia, and Albania signed a declaration on cooperation in the field of security and defense in 2025. Serbia has described this cooperation as an offensive alliance against it and the Serbs.

Croatia's Foreign Minister, Gordan Grlic Radman, has also rejected claims by Serbian officials about Croatian interference in local elections in that country, describing them as "conspiracy theories."

"It seems to me that the citizens of Serbia understand that this has nothing to do with Croatia," he said, answering journalists' questions.

He added that politicians in Serbia should not deal with “fictions”, but with reforms and meeting the criteria for progress in the European Union membership process. Recent tensions between Serbia and Croatia were also fueled after Belgrade purchased missiles from China, about which Plenkovic said on March 13 that he had written to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

The Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also added Croatia to the list of countries that should only be visited "in cases of necessity", citing as a reason "increasingly frequent incidents, tensions and unfavorable security circumstances", without specifying which events are in question. /REL