the collapse of the Novi Sad railway station by the highest state officials was condemned. has been interpreted as a demonstration of continued leverage in the context of the dispute over NIS. With the exception of the EP resolution, which was dismissed by the authorities, the ruling party responded to these developments by adopting a constructive posture, stepping up its activities within the EPP, and pledging to implement long-overdue reforms. Upon the announcement of the sanctions, NIS management stated that it had temporarily secured the regular supply of oil products to the domestic market as well as the social stability of its employees. However, experts expect that, if the sanctions remain in place, the company will face logistical difficulties in supply, which could lead to higher oil prices. Ursula von der Leyen and Aleksandar Vučić in Belgrade; Photo: European Union On 26 October, President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić announced that the country was in negotiations with Russian, American, and European partners, and that there were sufficient oil reserves until mid-November, after which Serbia would“start making its own decisions and protect the population.” A day later, Reuters reported that, due to supply shortages, Serbia had only a few days left before the NIS oil refinery in Pančevo would be forced to halt crude-oil processing. Many experts, however, based on past experience, believe these activities to be mere window dressing. These concerns appeared to be confirmed when the ruling party violated procedure in the election of the new Council of the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media, in an attempt to maintain a majority in this influential institution. Two­thirds of the candidates who reached the final stage of the process sent an open letter to the Speaker of the Assembly, calling for the restoration of legality in the process. Serbian energy sector falls victim to the foreign policy balancing On 9 October 2025, the United States sanctions on the majority Russian-owned Petroleum Industry of Serbia (NIS) entered into force. The U.S. had placed NIS on the sanctions list on 10 January, with the aim, among other things, of preventing the financing of the war in Ukraine through revenues from Russian energy companies. Since then, the implementation of the sanctions had been postponed several times. Serbia sold the majority of NIS shares to Russian companies Gazprom and Gazprom Neft in 2008. Since the sanctions were announced in January, the ownership structure of NIS has changed several times, but the company remains majority-owned by Russian firms. The Serbian government has been unwilling to nationalize the company. At the same time, Russia extended its gas-supply contract with Serbia only until the end of the year, which NIS company; Photo: FoNet //021.rs/printscreen IMPRESSUM Publisher Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung(FES) Belgrade Office Dositejeva 51/1, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia Author Centre for Contemporary Politics Makedonska 21, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia The opinions expressed in this publication are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the FES. Commercial use of all media published by the FES is not permitted without the written consent of the FES. October 2025 ↗ serbia.fes.de ↗ centarsavremenepolitike.rs Serbia in Political and Economic Turmoil Ahead of the 1 November Anniversary Protest 3