Abstract
<jats:p>In the past year and a half it has become clear that Serbia is a captured state and that the security sector is one of the most important means of preserving and cementing the situation. Security institutions have become an instrument for preserving the power of the ruling party; they participated in breaking up opposition protests, secret surveillance, intimidation and discrediting those that criticise the government. They also made sure that suspicious business deals of people close to the ruling party ran smoothly, and that the main actors involved in these activities were never held to account, either politically or legally. The trend of increasing expenditures for the security sector by additional redistribution of funds through budget rebalances has continued. The National Assembly, which - by way of its committees - should be one of the main institutions of democratic control of the security sector, has become an instrument for expressing support for the ruling party, and for public attacks on and discreditation of anyone who criticises the work of the government. The above is a consequence of the fact that the opposition has boycotted the parliamentary elections in June 2020 due to the absence of minimum conditions for holding fair elections. To legitimise the existing situation, the ruling party continues to maintain and strengthen foreign policy ties with undemocratic regimes.</jats:p>