In Serbia, a controversial lithium mine project worries the European Union

The Serbian Jadar lithium mine project is one of the largest projects of its kind and has the potential to generate around half a billion US dollars in annual revenue. Yet, the environmental concerns that go along with such a project have led thousands to come out and protest in Belgrade and elsewhere. Nevertheless, President Aleksandar Vučić recently told the Financial Times that the mine is expected to open in 2028 and will produce 58,000 tonnes of lithium annually.

At the beginning of September, 21 Serbian activists were placed on a blacklist of the so-called "environmental terrorists" created by an anonymous group known as Kopaćemo (“we will dig”). This came in the wake of a large protest in Belgrade on August 18th, which drew a crowd of around 50,000 people. Following the protest, police arrested three activists and a judge promptly sentenced them to 30 to 40 days in prison. Surprisingly, the charges were not related to the blocking of railway traffic, which the activists had staged in protest of proposed lithium mines in southern Serbia, but rather an alleged assault on a journalist from Informer, a pro-government tabloid known for its sensationalist stories and support of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party.