Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic speaks to journalists at a summit in Belgrade, Serbia on July 4, 2026. Vucic’s government has solidified Serbia’s ties with Russia, China, and Iran; Ivana Stradner argues that this is why the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly should not hold its annual session in Belgrade in 2027. (Shutterstock/ToskanaINC)

Why the OSCE Shouldn’t Meet in Serbia

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The OSCE’s recent decision to hold its 2027 meeting in Belgrade will reward Serbia for its democratic backsliding and pro-authoritarian foreign policy.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić is facing the greatest political challenge of his decade in power amid ongoing nationwide protests over corruption and democratic backsliding. Yet rather than pressing Belgrade for reform, Western countries have handed Vučić a token of legitimacy.

Earlier this month, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA) accepted Serbia’s bid to host the organization’s 2027 annual session in Belgrade. Last week, a bipartisan coalition in Congress, led by Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), head of the US delegation to the OSCE PA, pushed back, asking that the meeting be held in Charleston, South Carolina, rather than Belgrade. They’re right to do so given the Vučić regime’s long track record of repressing civil liberties, destabilizing the Balkans, and cozying up to authoritarian enemies of the West.

Belgrade’s push to host the OSCE session comes at a moment when Vučić most needs international validation. Student-led protests in Serbia have become the most significant challenge to President Vučić’s government. The demonstrations were sparked by the collapse of a canopy at the Novi Sad train station that killed 16 people, with protesters accusing........

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