Suspicion in Serbia after Opposition Leader Meets President

Surprise talks between Serbian opposition politician Dragan Djilas and President Aleksandar Vucic concerning an inconclusive election in the capital, Belgrade, has triggered anger and suspicion within the ranks of the country's opposition.

Djilas is a former mayor of Belgrade and leader of the Freedom and Justice Party, which ran in this month's parliamentary and local elections as part of an opposition bloc called United for Serbia.

Vucic was re-elected as president and his ruling Serbian Progressive Party, SNS, again won the parliamentary vote, but there was no clear winner in Belgrade, where 55 seats were won by the SNS and its allies in the Socialist Party, SPS, and 55 by the opposition, including United for Serbia.

Djilas said he had proposed to Vucic a re-run in Belgrade and that the president said he would respond by the end of the year. There was no word about the meeting from Vucic's office.

Other opposition figures, inside and outside of United for Serbia, criticised Djilas for meeting Vucic without first consulting them or waiting for final official results of the Belgrade election. Djilas said he had attended purely as a representative of his own party.

"If someone has a better solution, let them say it," Djilas told reporters. "But they should not compete with SNS in the sport of attacking Dragan Djilas."

"The opposition and SNS-SPS now have 55 seats each," he said. "The 'United for Serbia' and 'Moramo' coalition have more votes than SNS. Even if they [SNS-SPS] form a majority, it will not be stable and will lack legitimacy."

Splits in opposition ranks

The meeting raised eyebrows given how far Djilas is vilified in pro-government media and how critical he has been of the Progressive...