Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has announced his resignation. Speaking to a rally of supporters in Belgrade on Saturday, the Balkan nation’s leader stated he would stay in office “for a few more weeks” before calling early presidential and parliamentary elections.

The announcement came amid continued anti-government protests accompanied by sporadic clashes with police. The demonstrations are part of a movement that began after a 2024 railway station disaster in Novi Sad, which left 16 people dead. The Serbian government has repeatedly claimed the unrest was incited by Brussels as part of a pressure campaign aimed at forcing Belgrade to adjust its foreign policy in line with the EU.

Vucic did not explain his decision but said “nothing is for life and thank God it is not.” He also said he would not be staying until the end of his term in May 2027. “I will only be president for a few more weeks, then I will resign,” Vucic said, adding that it was his “last time” addressing so many people as the president of Serbia.

In his speech, Vucic also stressed it was paramount for Serbia to maintain military neutrality and political independence while continuing its path toward EU integration.

“We want to protect and defend our skies ourselves, not to have some foreign army guard it for us,” he stated, adding that “no price” is too high for that “because this is freedom.” Nobody should be able to “send us an email or fax and say: ‘You have to comply with some declaration coming from any center of the world,” the president added.

Last month, Vucic accused the EU of wanting to govern Serbia by email, slamming what he called Brussels’ attempts to control Belgrade’s foreign relations. He particularly criticized the EU for attempting to force Serbia to break its ties with Moscow and Beijing.

On Saturday, the president also stated those ties should be preserved. “Serbia makes decisions on its own. We will not ruin our friendships [with] the People’s Republic of China, with the Russians. We do not throw our friends away or renounce them when it is difficult,” he said, adding that Belgrade offers its people “unity, not division.”

The EU has been pressuring Serbia to impose sanctions on Russia, a historic ally, and to support Kiev if it hopes to join the bloc. Brussels has criticized Vucic’s close ties with both Beijing and Moscow, urging him to make a “strategic choice” of direction.

Belgrade continues to maintain strong ties with Russia, which supplies roughly 80% of Serbia’s natural gas imports. In early June, Vucic also visited China, where he secured more than $1 billion in investment pledges.