President Vučić to Appear on RTS Program ‘Thursday at 9’ Serbia’s airwaves are being cleared for one man tonight: President Aleksandar Vučić will dominate prime-time on the public broadcaster RTS, just as a cluster of sensitive political, economic, and geopolitical deadlines converge.

The set-up: a packed political calendar

Earlier today, RTS announced that Vučić will be the sole guest of its flagship political show “Thursday at 9,” airing at 9 p.m. on the first channel of the public service broadcaster. The timing is calibrated to a charged anniversary calendar: 20 years since Montenegro’s independence and 18 years since Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence, both emotional pressure points in Serbian politics.

On the foreign-policy front, Vučić is due to leave for a multi-day visit to China on May 24, where relations with “great powers” and energy security will be central themes. Domestically, a deadline is expiring for Belgrade to sort out problems with Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS), hit by U.S. sanctions because of its Russian majority ownership — a test of how far Serbia can stretch its balancing act between East and West.

Pro-government framing: the president as guardian of hope

Pro-government outlet Republika trails the appearance as a chance for Vučić to address “the most important topics and current events” and cast himself as the calm pilot steering the “Serbian ship” into “a peaceful harbor” amid “attacks by various foreign powers.” They spotlight his recent reception of the Holy Belt of the Theotokos at Belgrade’s Nikola Tesla airport, which he called an “enormous honor” and “enormous hope” for Serbia, linking spiritual symbolism with national resilience.

Opposition framing: public service, or presidential stage?

Opposition-leaning Danas sticks to the hard politics: it underscores that Vučić will speak about China, “relations with great powers,” NIS, corruption, and elections — precisely as crucial decisions on sanctions exposure and future voting loom. For critics, another prime-time solo on RTS is less public information and more incumbency advantage, reinforcing a media ecosystem where the president’s narrative swamps all others.

Tonight’s broadcast, then, isn’t just an interview. It’s a live referendum on who controls Serbia’s story at a moment when both history and geopolitics are pressing in.