Milorad Ivanovic

This project investigates the emotional manipulation underpinning the relationship between Serbia and Russia, challenging the prevailing myth of an unshakable Slavic-Orthodox brotherhood. Drawing on narrative analysis, open-source intelligence, and emotional geopolitics, the research reveals how false narratives—rooted in nostalgia, humiliation, and defiance—are weaponized to shape public perception and foreign policy. From obscure YouTube disinformation campaigns to staged diplomatic spectacles, the project uncovers the hidden mechanics of geopolitical storytelling. While officially, Serbia balances carefully between East and West, emotionally charged propaganda continues to tether its public imagination to Moscow. This interdisciplinary inquiry aims to produce a book, public lectures, and policy recommendations, offering fresh insight into a transactional, often contradictory alliance. By decoding these narratives, the project speaks to broader questions of post-imperial identity, media manipulation, and the EU’s struggle to engage its peripheries. The findings will help demystify one of Europe’s most misunderstood diplomatic entanglements — one in which emotion often trumps reason.