European Parliament gets no Serbia invite to monitor vote
Parliament confirms no invitation from Belgrade has arrived, but sources differ on whether a mission is still possible: the deadline was October 8, the DEG decision is due October 20.
The European Parliament has not received an invitation from the Serbian authorities to send an observation mission to the snap parliamentary elections scheduled for October 25, the institution confirmed to Radio Free Europe (RFE/RL). With 16 days to go before the vote, the way sources disagree about the deadline shows the question is not yet settled.
What did the European Parliament say?
In a written reply to RFE/RL, Parliament said:
“The European Parliament does not send its observers without an invitation. The European Parliament has not yet received an invitation from the Serbian authorities to observe the upcoming elections in Serbia.”
RFE/RL further reports that the deadline for sending an invitation expired on October 8. According to the same source, Parliament explained that the Conference of Presidents, which brings together the head of the institution and the leaders of the political groups, held a regular meeting that day at which it was supposed to approve the mission. If an invitation arrives after October 8, Parliament can no longer prepare the mission for procedural reasons, RFE/RL reports.
The procedure is clear: election observation delegations operate under the Democracy Support and Election Coordination Group (DEG), the Conference of Presidents approves them, and the political groups in Parliament appoint the members. Whether observers can be present on election day depends entirely on a formal invitation from the state.
Insajder: the delegation is approved, but the invitation is missing
The reading of the deadline is not uniform. On the same day, October 9, Insajder received confirmation from the European Parliament that sending a delegation has been approved, but that an official invitation from Serbia, which has not yet arrived, is required for it to travel. If no invitation is sent, the mission has to be cancelled.
According to Insajder, the DEG will discuss the matter at a meeting scheduled for October 20 in Strasbourg, five days before the election. RFE/RL, on the other hand, says a mission is no longer possible for procedural reasons if the invitation arrives after October 8. The two sources thus paint different pictures: in one, the expired deadline has closed the door; in the other, the decision is still to come. On one point they agree: the invitation from Serbia has not arrived.
What do the opposition and the National Convention on the EU say?
Representatives of opposition parties accuse the authorities of deliberately stalling on sending an invitation to the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). The published reports contain no response from the Serbian authorities on why the invitation has not been sent.
The National Convention on the European Union called on the competent institutions to send the invitation without delay. Its statement says: “We welcome the fact that ODIHR has already deployed an observation mission and that an invitation has been sent to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).” It then continued:
“The European Parliament, however, has not received an invitation. This is an exception to previous practice, and by a candidate country for EU membership. This delegation, together with the ODIHR and PACE missions, traditionally takes part in the joint international assessment of elections in Serbia. Leaving out the institution that directly follows Serbia’s EU accession process sends a message that runs counter to the proclaimed European orientation.”
The Convention also warned about timing: “because of internal deadlines in the European Parliament, the invitation needs to be sent as soon as possible,” and if it were sent right before election day, “the possibility of forming a delegation would be called into question.” The statement concludes: “International observation is not interference in elections or prejudging their outcome, but a standard instrument for assessing compliance with obligations that the Republic of Serbia has itself accepted. If institutions have confidence in the integrity of the electoral process, there is no justified reason to limit the possibility of international observation.”
Who will monitor the vote for now?
So far, only the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe has confirmed a mission, which has been working since September 16. The European Parliament last observed elections in Serbia on December 17, 2023, when a five-member delegation worked within the international mission led by the OSCE and ODIHR.
European Commission spokesperson Guillaume Mercier told RFE/RL that free, fair and transparent elections are at the core of European democracy, and added:
“This implies the right of citizens to make a free and informed electoral choice, as well as equal conditions for all participants in the elections, including equal access to the media, separation of state and party, and avoiding undue advantages enjoyed by incumbents.”
Whether a European Parliament delegation will come to Serbia at all depends on a single document that, as of October 9, had not reached Strasbourg. The next date Parliament has tied to this issue is the DEG meeting on October 20.
