Man declares country in unclaimed pocket of land between Serbia and Croatia
11 days ago
- #microstates
- #humanitarian aid
- #border disputes
- Daniel Jackson, a 20-year-old from Australia, claims to be the president of the Free Republic of Verdis, a self-declared microstate on the Croatia-Serbia border.
- Verdis is located in an uninhabited forest area known as 'Pocket 3,' unclaimed by either Croatia or Serbia due to a historical border dispute.
- Jackson founded Verdis in 2019 with the vision of creating a neutral state and hub for NGOs and humanitarian aid workers.
- Croatian authorities destroyed a settlement attempt in October 2023 and banned Jackson from entering Croatia.
- Verdis has issued passports and IDs to 400 people, with 15,000 citizenship applications received, though the documents are not officially recognized.
- Jackson was inspired by Liberland, another microstate in the region, but aims for Verdis to be a functional settlement with new governance systems.
- Currently, Jackson lives in Dover, England, and plans to protest outside the Croatian embassy in London with other Verdis officials.