Serbia imposes threats on anti-Putin Russian refugees: A backlash against war criticism

Serbia is coming down hard on Russians who are against the ongoing war and Russian President Vladimir Putin's rule, according to the Associated Press. The American media outlet highlights the plight of Elena Koposova, who fled Russia for Serbia with her family, only to now face deportation. She believes this is due to her public condemnation of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Following the upsurge of hostilities in Ukraine, the 54-year-old signed an open letter registering her disapproval of Russian activities. "I'm not an activist, but I felt compelled to sign the anti-war letter when Russia initiated aggression against Ukraine", said Koposova, as quoted by AP. "Despite not being an activist, I couldn't turn a blind eye. I simply appended my name to the open letter, which proclaimed that war is a crime and we all have a responsibility to unite in an effort to put a stop to it," she added.

It was a twist of fate the Russian woman hadn't foreseen. Serbia, which is formally pursuing European Union membership and hence, in theory, endorsing all democratic values, seems to be taking a contrary stance. Elena Koposova's predicament is far from unique, AP reveals. In recent years, Belgrade has welcomed tens of thousands of Russians fleeing Putin's regime and opposing the war.

According to pro-democracy Russian activists, recent times have seen at least a dozen of them face entry bans or revocation of residence permits. Allegedly, the reasons given, similar to that in Koposova's case, were threats to Serbia's national security. AP notes that at least eight other Russians are too fearful to openly discuss their legal issues with local authorities.

Human rights advocates believe that these problems are due to the cordial relationship between Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and Putin. Despite Serbia's official candidate status for EU membership, Vučić declined to support Western sanctions against Moscow.

"There's quite a close political relationship between the authorities in Belgrade and those in Moscow," said Predrag Petrovic, Research Coordinator at the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy, in a statement to AP. The think tank has demanded clarification from the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs regarding the actions taken against Russian immigrants. Petrovic opined, "Individuals critical of Putin's regime are deemed highly threatening by the Moscow regime. This likely explains why they're being targeted by Serbian authorities."

Source: Associated Press