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Fiat to be first electric car produced in Serbia after EU lithium deal
The agreement made in June has been fiercely criticised by environmentalists and opposition groups in Serbia, who argue that it would cause irreversible environmental damage while bringing little benefit to its citizens.
A new trial production line of the electric version of Fiat’s Grande Panda car was inaugurated in Kragujevac last Monday.
Built at the factory known for producing the Italian brand’s vehicles since it was rebranded under Fiat Chrysler — now Stellantis — in 2008, it’s set to become the first-ever electric car to be mass-produced in Serbia, with production expected to begin this October.
Its launch follows a deal on lithium reached with the EU in early July in Belgrade that could reduce Europe’s dependency on China and push Serbia, which has close ties to Moscow and Beijing, closer to Brussels.
That deal, however, has been fiercely criticised by environmentalists and opposition groups in Serbia, who argue it would cause irreversible damage to the environment while bringing little benefit to its citizens.
According to the 2023 US Geological Survey, Serbia is estimated to have around 1.2 million tonnes of lithium reserves, a critical mineral for making electric batteries, as the transition to zero-emission vehicles accelerates.
For Fiat’s Grande Panda vehicle, the Stellantis group said it took two years to adapt the Kragujevac plant so it could produce EVs.
The Grande Panda comes with distinctive LED lights and an interior made using up-cycled materials.
After rolling off the production line in Kragujevac, the cars will be delivered to showrooms in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares says his company is ready to rise to the challenge from Chinese EV makers. “We at Stellantis are ready for the fight,” he says.
“We are going to demonstrate to them that we are hard-working. We are going to demonstrate to them that we have the right technology. We are going to demonstrate to them that we are a very fierce competitor.”
Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vučić was at the inauguration of the new trial production line.
“I congratulate you on this big day. I congratulate everyone in Serbia. I am proud of our Serbia, proud of Fiat, and proud of Stellantis,” he says.
“I am proud of our cooperation, which is not always simple and easy, and we love that fighting spirit that we saw here today. We will not lack that, and we will fight and work hard in order to catch the most developed countries of Europe and the world.”
The Stellantis group, which sold 1.35 million vehicles worldwide last year, recently reported net profits down by half in the first half of the year due largely to lower sales and restructuring costs.
Created in 2021 from the merger of Fiat-Chrysler with PSA Peugeot, the Franco-Italian multinational reported net profits of €5.6 billion in the period, down 48% compared with €11bn in the same period last year.
ADVERTISEMENTThousands in Serbia protest lithium deal
Meanwhile, on Monday, thousands of people rallied in several towns in Serbia to protest a lithium excavation project the Balkan country’s government recently signed with the European Union.
The protests were held simultaneously in the western town of Šabac and the central towns of Kraljevo, Aranđelovac, Ljig, and Barajevo.
They followed similar gatherings in other Serbian towns in the past few weeks. The biggest lithium reserve in Serbia lies in a western valley that is rich in fertile land and water.
The multinational Rio Tinto company had started an exploration project in the area several years ago, which sparked huge opposition, forcing its suspension.
ADVERTISEMENTEarlier this month, however, Serbia’s constitutional court overturned the government’s previous decision to cancel a $2.4bn (€2.21bn) mining project launched by the British-Australian mining company in the Jadar Valley, paving the way for its revival.
Vučić has said that any excavation would not start before 2028 and that the government would seek firm environmental guarantees before allowing the digging.
new video loaded: W.H.O. Chief Visits Ebola-Struck Region: ‘It’s Time to Move Fast’
transcript
transcript
W.H.O. Chief Visits Ebola-Struck Region: ‘It’s Time to Move Fast’
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the World Health Organization, told The New York Times on a flight to the Democratic Republic of Congo that swift international support was necessary to contain the Ebola virus, which is spreading rapidly there.
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“Of course there are different scenarios, but it’s in our hands. We move fast, we will catch up. If we don’t, it will be a very serious problem. So it’s time to really move fast.” A dire warning from the World Health Organization chief as we approach Ituri, the province at the center of Democratic Republic of Congo’s Ebola outbreak. More than 1,000 suspected Ebola cases and over 200 suspected deaths have been reported here. With no vaccines and no treatment for the virus species fueling the outbreak, containment is where immediate efforts should focus, health officials say. It’s not easy. Testing capacity is still very low. Protective supplies are short. Both the facilities for isolation and the region’s overall health care infrastructure are insufficient. “We cannot tell them what the problem is, Ebola is one but there are many problems and we have to listen to them.” It’s not the first Ebola outbreak for Congo, and as a glimmer of hope, officials say at least one health care worker was discharged earlier this week after recovering. But international commitments to fund their response aren’t enough. Only one-third of the needed funds have been delivered, the W.H.O. chief says. “Do you think the world is moving fast enough right now?” “It’s starting to understand now, but I still don’t think it’s enough.”
By Bethlehem Feleke, Michael Anthony Adams and Alisa Shodiyev Kaff
May 30, 2026
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Russia and the Taliban government in Afghanistan have signed a military cooperation pact, cementing an alliance that further solidifies Moscow’s influence in Central Asia, according to reports.
The deal, finalized Wednesday at an international security forum in Russia, followed a meeting between Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu and Afghan Defense Minister Mohammad Yaqoob.
The Taliban Defense Ministry announced on X that Yaqoob had traveled to Russia to attend the conference.
Yaqoob is the Taliban’s former military chief and the son of Taliban founder Mullah Mohammad Omar.
AL QAEDA REMAINS MOST DANGEROUS TERRORIST GROUP 24 YEARS AFTER 9/11, EXPERT WARNS
Russia and the Taliban government in Afghanistan have signed a new military-technical cooperation pact, cementing an alliance that solidifies Moscow’s influence in Central Asia. (Photo by Elke Scholiers / Getty Images)
Omar had formed a close alliance with Osama bin Laden and provided a safe haven from which al Qaeda planned the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
As of Thursday, neither Russia nor the Afghan side had shared the further details of the new military agreement.
“Afghanistan and Russia have long and historical relations. In this direction, we want to move further. We have expanded bilateral relations,” Yaqoob said at the meeting.
The pact follows statements from a senior Russian security official who noted that Moscow has established a “full-fledged partnership” with Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban and is encouraging other countries in the region to expand cooperation with Kabul, Reuters reported.
The Taliban had regained power in August 2021, after overthrowing the U.S.-backed Afghan government run by President Ashraf Ghani.
In 2021, Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged the possibility of dropping Russia’s classification of the Taliban as a terrorist organization.
FORMER AFGHAN TRANSLATOR WARNS OF STARVATION, HUMANITARIAN CRISIS: ‘BACK TO WHERE WE STARTED IN 2001’
In 2021, Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged the possibility of dropping Russia’s classification of the Taliban as a terrorist organization. (Alexander Kazakov/Sputnik/Kremlin Pool Photo/AP, File)
In 2024, he called the Taliban “allies in the fight against terrorism” and Russia became the first country to formally recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
“After several years of vacillation, Russia has become the first country in the world to officially recognize the Taliban government in Afghanistan,” Nikita Smagin, an expert on Iranian foreign and domestic policies, Islamism and Russia’s policy in the Middle East, said in a report from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
“It’s more of a symbolic gesture than something driven by trade or economic considerations,” Smagin added, describing how when Taliban militants entered the Afghan capital in August 2021, “Russia was already deemed eligible for special treatment.”
“Its diplomatic mission was immediately provided with security, and Russian Ambassador Dmitry Zhirnov became the first foreign diplomat to meet with the new rulers of Afghanistan,” he explained.
On Wednesday, Shoigu also called for Western countries to unfreeze sanctioned Afghan assets.
AFGHANISTAN’S ONLY WOMEN-LED RADIO STATION TO RESUME OPERATIONS AFTER TALIBAN LIFTS SUSPENSION
Russia has become the first country in the world to officially recognize the Taliban government in Afghanistan. (Photo by Elke Scholiers / Getty Images)
“We are convinced that Western countries should unfreeze blocked Afghan assets, fully recognize their responsibility for their 20-year presence in Afghanistan, and bear the burden of the country’s post-conflict reconstruction,” Shoigu said, according to reports.
“Moscow needs to take steps that will restore its image as an influential power that holds the initiative, and recognition of the Taliban regime serves precisely that purpose,” Smagin added.
“The status of the first country to establish official diplomatic relations with the Taliban government should ensure Russia has a leading role in discussions of regional security issues.”
The recognition of the Taliban, he said, was an attempt by Russia to “prove itself as a leading global force that is not afraid to break established norms and set precedents for other countries.”
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Moscow continues to emphasize the need to work directly with Kabul as it faces severe, ongoing security threats from various rival Islamist militant groups operating throughout Central Asia and the Middle East, Reuters said.
Shoigu also said Moscow was building a “pragmatic dialogue” with the Taliban that included security, trade, culture and humanitarian support, the outlet reported May 14.
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