Through The Eyes of a Serb: Public Opinion in a Time of Global Upheaval

Based on this, the analysis reveals how Serbian citizens see the world in times of growing global crises. The survey shows a deep distrust of Western institutions, a pronounced tendency towards balancing between Russia, China and the West, as well as a strong focus on domestic issues, such as socio-economic stability. At the same time, there is a belief that Serbia is geopolitically marginalised, which further strengthens the feeling of frustration due to the stagnation in European integration and encourages an orientation towards diplomatic balancing.

Although predominantly focused on internal issues, Serbian citizens show interest in global topics such as climate change and human rights. The public’s attitude towards international relations increasingly resembles the approach of the Global South countries, which insist on sovereignty, pragmatic cooperation, and the rejection of military instruments in international politics. The publication provides valuable insight into understanding the factors shaping Serbia’s foreign policy orientation in an unstable global environment, and conclusions can also be drawn about how both the Serbian public and Serbian foreign policy elites think about international relations.

The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung or of the organisation for which the author works.