Anti-lithium activists ask Macron for help, Élysée says decision on mining lies with Serbia

Serbian environmentalist coalition SEOS has sent a letter to French President Emmanuel Macron, seeking his support in blocking the planned lithium mining project. However, the Élysée Palace responded that the matter is in Serbia’s hands.

Commenting on the letter, the French presidency confirmed that it will not interfere in national affairs, saying that the opening of a lithium mine is “a decision that belongs to Serbia,” Euractiv reports.

In the letter sent ahead of Macron’s visit to Serbia, which begins tonight, SEOS states that the part of the country where the mine is planned faces great risk. “That risk comes from the lithium-borate mine proposed by the multinational company Rio Tinto, in the fertile valley of the Jadar River,” the letter reads.

“Opening a lithium mine would pose a great risk”

The site planned for the mine is populated agricultural land that is also a significant reservoir of drinking water, the letter recalls, warning that jadarite ore demands separating lithium from borate, a process which has never been attempted on an industrial scale and which requires huge quantities of sulfuric acid and water.

“As shown in a paper published in the journal Scientific Reports, exploratory drilling has already adversely affected the water, flora, and biodiversity,” SEOS noted.

The letter also recalls that the Government of Serbia abandoned the Jadar project in January 2022 following mass civil protests, but later decided to revive the project with Rio Tinto.

It is also notes that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz recently visited Serbia with a European Union delegation to support the lithium mine project “for the needs of the German automotive industry.”

SEOS: the Serbian people will not allow the mine to be opened by force

“Mr. President Macron, rest assured that the Serbian people will not allow the mine to be opened by force in the interest of Rio Tinto,” SEOS writes. The coalition adds that it hopes the French president will demonstrate he is worthy of “our ancestors who fought together [in World War I].”