Groundhog Day: Serbia

The Srebrenica genocide resolution passed, but Serbian leaders are spinning it as a diplomatic victory. President Vucic stands to gain most come Sunday's re-run of Serbia's local elections.

The resolution on the Srebrenica genocide has passed, and, contrary to all the warnings ahead of the UN vote, the region does not appear to have been destabilized by it, at least not to any major extent. Perhaps that’s because some Serbs in the region, including Serbian leaders, have interpreted the resolution as a victory: the final vote count broke down as 84 in favor, 19 against, and 68 abstentions, with nearly all Western countries, save for Hungary, Greece and Cyprus voting for the resolution. But the large number of abstentions have allowed Serbian leaders and media to spin it as a success. Right before the vote, Serbian media reported that Vanuatu, Antigua and Barbuda, and Malawi withdrew as co-sponsors of the resolution. Several major economies, including the United Arab Emirates, Brazil, and India, abstained. During the discussion ahead of the vote, abstainers and even countries that voted in favor like Egypt spoke of double standards, “politics” and hypocrisy. Immediately after the resolution passed, the streets of Belgrade were filled with cars honking horns and flying large Serbian flags, as if Novak Djokovic had just won a major tennis tournament.