Serbia deputy prime minister says Russian spies help put down protests

Students and anti-government demonstrators hold fifteen minutes of silence, with the flashlights of their mobile phones on, for the victims of the deadly November 2024 Novi Sad railway station roof collapse during a protest, which has become a national movement for change following the deadly Novi Sad incident, in Belgrade, Serbia, March 15, 2025. REUTERS/Mitar Mitrovic/File Photo

BELGRADE (Reuters) - Serbia's deputy prime minister said on Friday Russia's spy services had helped the Belgrade authorities respond to months of anti-government protests, remarks which critics said revealed that the government had become dependent on Moscow.

Students, backed by teachers, farmers and workers, have maintained daily protests across Serbia since last November, when 16 people died in a roof collapse at a train station in the northern city of Novi Sad, which they blame on corruption.