Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman said he expects Brussels to react to the expulsion of Croatian citizens from Serbia and assessed that official Belgrade's actions are not in the spirit of good neighborly relations.
"Every country that aspires to membership in the European Union absolutely needs to accept all EU values, and freedom of movement is one of the fundamental ones," Grlić Radman told reporters in Zagreb yesterday.
He said that the decision to expel Croatian citizens due to the alleged security threat to Serbia is unacceptable for Croatia, which is why a protest note was sent with a request for an explanation, the Beta agency reported.
The Minister highlighted the case of Croatian citizen Arien Stojanović Ivković, the mother of a three-year-old child, who graduated from the Faculty of Medicine in Belgrade, got a job, got married and started a family, but the Serbian authorities denied her hospitality after 12 years of living in Belgrade, expelled her from the country and banned her from entering for a year, because she allegedly poses an "unacceptable security risk".
The Associated Press (AP) reports that Ivković Stojanović has appealed an order to leave Serbia within seven days, which would break up the family and separate their daughter from her father. The 31-year-old doctor believes she is being targeted for a post she made supporting student protests.
"We also sought an answer, an explanation, and expressed concern about such behavior, because this is not an isolated case," said Grlić Radman.
He added that in recent months, 32 cases of expulsion or ban on entry into Serbia for Croatian citizens have been recorded, emphasizing that there may be more such cases, because not everyone has informed Croatia about it.
When asked by journalists whether he saw Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić's responsibility in these decisions, the minister replied that he would not go into that, but that it was certain that the authorities were involved in the expulsions.
Grlić Radman said that he had not received a response from Serbia to the earlier protest notes, but that the representative of the EU Delegation in Belgrade, as well as the European Commission, had been informed about everything.
"The most important thing here is dialogue and we are waiting for a response from the Serbian side," he said, adding that there will be an informal meeting with the foreign ministers of the Western Balkan countries in Luxembourg on Sunday.
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković also condemned the expulsions of Croatian citizens and demanded an explanation from Belgrade.
"The expulsion of Croatian citizens from Serbia is an unacceptable practice, condemnable, with the insinuation that our citizens are interfering in internal events in Serbia, which is certainly not the case," Plenković said at a government session, adding that EU partners have been informed about everything.
AP recalls that Vučić and his allies say that unidentified Western intelligence services are behind the student-led protests, with the aim of removing him from power by organizing a so-called "color revolution."
Police detained and questioned several students and critics of the government, while media watchdog organizations warned of attacks and threats against journalists covering the protests.
Previously, Russians who criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin and his invasion of Ukraine were also expelled from Serbia.
Entry bans have also been imposed on artists from the region and pro-democracy activists. In January, Serbia expelled 13 citizens of Croatia, Romania, and Austria who had participated in a civil society workshop in Belgrade.
In March, television crews from Croatia and Slovenia were stopped at the border when they tried to enter Serbia to report on a large anti-government protest.
Pusić: Continuation of Vučić's policies
Former Croatian Foreign Minister Vesna Pusić assessed that the latest decisions to expel Croatian citizens are just a continuation of Vučić's policy.
"It is an attempt to homogenize the domestic situation by projecting external enemies, and Croatia is, or at least was until recently, a very convenient, but not dangerous enemy," Pusić told Croatian N1 television.
She added that months of mass protests in Serbia mean a political transformation of the country, and that Vučić, as she says, has reason to be afraid.
When asked whether the strategy of projecting external enemies is working, Pusić answered in the negative.
"The Serbian public did not react to this by turning against the protesters, on the contrary. In this process, hundreds of leaders are being born and forged who may not be recognized now, but in a period of five years, future leaders will certainly emerge in this process. Vučić, who has a good political instinct, recognizes this and fears it," Pusić assessed.
She sees "quiet diplomacy" - informal channels outside the public eye - as the only realistic possibility for Croatia to respond to the expulsions.
When "a hunt is launched against someone from a high position, there are always madmen, fellow villagers who will consider it a signal that they can attack these people." "This situation has already made life difficult for these people," Pusić pointed out.
She added that all Croats in Serbia will be in a difficult situation due to this type of behavior by the authorities.
"No one needs to formally attack them, as they already are, but an atmosphere is being created that certainly makes their lives more difficult."
Bonus video:
