Croatian President Zoran Milanovic has cancelled this year’s Brdo-Brijuni summit, which was due to take place in Croatia in May, saying there were no longer conditions for Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic to visit after his recent statements and actions.
In a written statement issued on Monday, Milanovic’s office said Vucic’s political messages and conduct in recent days and weeks were “completely contrary” to the goals of the Brdo-Brijuni Process, undermined interstate relations and threatened peace and stability in Southeast Europe.
“In such circumstances, the conditions do not exist and the arrival of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in the Republic of Croatia is not possible,” the statement said.
As co-chair of the Brdo-Brijuni Process, Milanovic informed participating heads of state that he was cancelling the planned meeting in Croatia. His office said the next summit would be held once conditions allowed, following consultations with Slovenian President Natasa Pirc Musar, the initiative’s other co-chair.
Vucic responded by saying Milanovic had no need to cancel the entire gathering because of him and that no one in Croatia would dictate what he could say.
“I am nobody’s errand boy, and Milanovic or any other Croatian official will not tell me what I am allowed to say,” Vucic told Serbia’s state news agency Tanjug, adding that he spoke “as the free president of Serbia”.
He said it was “far more important” for him to visit Jasenovac, the site of a World War Two concentration camp run by Croatia’s fascist Ustasa regime, than to attend the Brdo-Brijuni meeting, and added that he did not belong there anyway.
“Milanovic did not have to cancel the whole summit. He could simply have invited his friends from Pristina, Tirana and wherever else he wanted, because I would not have spoiled that idyllic atmosphere for them anyway,” Vucic said.
The cancellation marks the latest escalation in already strained relations between Belgrade and Zagreb, which have worsened in recent months amid mutual accusations over political interference, regional security and rhetoric linked to unrest in Serbia.
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said he knew nothing about Milanovic’s decision to cancel the meeting and dismissed what he described as “two false concepts” coming from Belgrade.
He rejected claims that Croatia was interfering in Serbia’s domestic politics or forming a military alliance with Albania and Kosovo against Serbia.
“We have two false concepts: one that Croatia is interfering in Serbia’s internal political affairs and is one of the drivers of some kind of ‘orange revolution’, and the other that Croatia is building a military alliance with Albania and Kosovo against Serbia. Both are completely untrue,” Plenkovic told reporters in Zagreb.
Asked about a recent conversation between Vucic and Russian President Vladimir Putin, in which the Serbian leader reportedly complained about an alleged alliance among Croatia, Albania and Kosovo, Plenkovic replied tersely: “Ask Vucic. Why are you asking me what Vucic said?”
Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman also rejected accusations from Belgrade that Zagreb had interfered in local elections in Serbia, calling them “conspiracy theories”.
“It seems to me that Serbian citizens understand that this has nothing to do with Croatia,” Grlic Radman said after Vucic had alleged that there were more vehicles with Zagreb licence plates than local ones near polling stations in the Serbian town of Kula.
He said politicians in Serbia should focus on reforms and meeting criteria for progress toward European Union membership rather than, as he put it, “confabulations”.
The Brdo-Brijuni Process was launched by Croatia and Slovenia, both European Union member states, to promote regional cooperation and accelerate the European integration of countries in Southeast Europe. Over the years it has served as one of the few regional forums where leaders could discuss bilateral disputes, EU accession and security issues.
In recent months, however, tensions between Serbia and Croatia have intensified. After mass anti-government protests and student blockades erupted in Serbia following the deaths of 16 people in Novi Sad in late 2024, Serbian authorities repeatedly accused Croatian intelligence services of helping organise the demonstrations. Croatian officials strongly denied the allegations.
Another point of friction has been Serbia’s purchase of Chinese missiles. On March 13, Plenkovic said he had written to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte about the issue, while Milanovic said he did not understand why Serbia was acquiring offensive weapons and voiced concern about possible consequences for regional security.
At the same time, Serbia’s foreign ministry placed Croatia on a list of countries that should be visited only in cases of “extreme necessity”, citing increasingly frequent incidents, tensions and unfavourable security conditions, without giving specific examples.
Vucic said on Monday that Croatia had nothing to fear from Serbia, but insisted Belgrade would not be silenced under pressure.
“We will preserve peace, Croatia should feel no threat from Serbia, but they will not shut our mouths and they will not tell us what to say,” he said.
Although Milanovic did not specify which remarks by Vucic triggered his decision, Croatian officials in recent days have sharply rejected accusations from Belgrade that Zagreb interfered in Serbia’s elections or was helping create an anti-Serbian military bloc in the Balkans.
The cancellation leaves the future of the Brdo-Brijuni initiative uncertain for now, with any new meeting likely to depend on whether Zagreb and Belgrade can ease tensions that have once again put their bilateral relationship under strain.