Croatian member of the European Parliament, Tonino Picula, said on Thursday that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic's policy of repression was the main obstacle to the country's EU membership bid, calling on Vucic's colleagues in the European People's Party (EPP) to stop supporting him.

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic had criticised Picula, Slovenian MEP Tanja Fajon, and Council of Europe Human Rights Commissioner Dunja Mijatovic for “stirring up violent anti-government protests in Belgrade.”

Picula said he was disappointed by those unsubstantiated accusations, describing footage of police brutality against protesters in Belgrade as shocking.

“Peaceful civil protests against the inconsistency of the Serbian government and President Aleksandar Vucic in managing the crisis caused by the coronavirus have escalated exactly because of how police have acted,” he said, adding that footage of violence could be seen in Serbia and beyond only thanks to the reporting of the few media outlets (N1, Nova.rs) that were not under the government’s control.

Picula called on the Serbian leadership to refrain from violent reactions to the protests in Belgrade and the rest of the country and urged protesters to present their demands peacefully.

“At the same time, I expect our colleagues in the EPP, of which Vucic’s party is a member, to stop with their counterproductive policy towards Southeast European countries and their tacit approval and occasional direct support to sister parties whose policies and values are in direct contravention of common European values,” said Picula.

“The destruction of democratic institutions in Serbia and the strengthening of Vucic’s authoritarian practices are among the main obstacles to Serbia’s more visible progress on the journey to the EU,” said Picula, a former chairman of a working group for the Western Balkans and rapporteur on enlargement recommendations and Montenegro.