Protesters demanded the rejection of Rio Tinto's mine investment and the withdrawal of proposed changes to the Expropriation and Referendum Laws.

The government of Serbia annulled all contracts with Rio Tinto in January 2022, however the protests continued up until the dissolution of the National Assembly on 15 February,[b] during which demands for introducing a moratorium on exploitation of lithium increased.

[5][6] Aleksandar Antić, who was then the minister of mining and energy, said that the project "will make Serbia a key processor of two very important elements–lithium and boron–which are essential for modern development".

[5][note 1] In an interview for the newspaper Danas in 2020, Miroslav Mijatović, the head of the Podrinje Anti-Corruption Team, said that local communities and environmental activists have opposed the implementation of Project Jadar.

[7][note 2] Ana Brnabić, the prime minister of Serbia, has described the project as of "exceptional importance" in late 2020 while Rio Tinto said that its technology "will be at service of the environment".

[17] The Ecological Uprising protest on 11 September was organised in Pioneers Park, Belgrade, in front of Novi dvor, the seat of president of Serbia.

[19][20] The day before the 6 November protest, whistleblowers released to the draft plan of the Project Jadar facility to be built in Gornje Nedeljice, a village in the Loznica municipality.

[26][27] Ecological Uprising claimed that the construction of the metro in Makiš would "lead to the complete destruction of Belgrade's largest water supply".

[28] Assembly of Free Serbia and environmental organisations emphasised that both laws "are not only related to projects of Rio Tinto and other mining companies, but also to all existing and future agreements".

[28][note 8] A day later, Savo Manojlović, spokesperson for Kreni-Promeni, announced that several civil society organisations had sent a petition to the National Assembly with 68,000 signatories who opposed the Law on Referendum.

[29] On the same day, an environmental protest was organised in front of Novi dvor as response to the National Assembly discussing the two laws.

[38] The masked men used batons to force demonstrators to open the roads for buses carrying supporters of President Aleksandar Vučić to a Serbian Progressive Party rally in Belgrade.

[50][51] During the protests, Vučić was present in Gornje Nedeljice, where he gave a press conference and announced that the changes to the Expropriation Law would be amended.

[58] Thousands of demonstrators took part in the protests at which Ćuta affirmed that "there will be no peace until exploitation of lithium is banned and Rio Tinto sent away from Serbia".

[80] On 15 January further protests were held at eleven locations, and in Belgrade and Preljina, there were unsuccessful attempts to drive through crowds of demonstrators.

[85] Four days later, Manojlović and Kreni-Promeni organised a press conference in front of the National Assembly where they announced that the initiative was rejected.

[89] At a Kreni-Promeni protest on 27 January, demonstrators gathered in front of Novi dvor, walked towards the Republic Square and then to the building of the government of Serbia.

[96] Manojlović later added that they would camp until the dissolution of the National Assembly, which took place on 15 February and was necessary to occur due to the incoming 2022 parliamentary election.

[97][98] A protest in front of Novi dvor was held on 10 February, after which environmental activists started camping in Pioneers Park.

[104][note 12] Botanist and academic Vladimir Stevanović has said that "the [lithium] mine would cause great and irreversible damage not only to the area where it would be opened, but to all of Serbia".

[105][note 13] Ratko Ristić, the dean of the Faculty of Forestry of the University of Belgrade, who supported the environmental protests, has also opposed the construction of the project, saying that "it bothers him that someone would destroy several thousand hectares of fertile land near Loznica and build a wasteland... of the most toxic materials".

[110][note 15] Activist Zlatko Kokanović, who lives in Gornje Nedeljice, said that the project would endanger the residents of the Jadar region and has refused to sell his property to Rio Tinto.

[110][111] Tennis player Novak Đoković has stated his support for the protests, saying that "air, water, and food are the keys to health.

[112][note 16] Actress Bojana Novaković was an active participant of the protests, while film director Emir Kusturica said "the idea to stop the mine project and Rio Tinto is definitely a good one".

[118][note 18] In response to the violent protests in Šabac on 27 November, Patriarch Porfirije called upon citizens to "protect each other, not fight".

[120] Demostat, a research and publishing NGO, conducted an opinion poll in December 2021 and found that a majority of respondents supported the environmental protests.

[122][note 20] Vojislav Šešelj, president of the Serbian Radical Party, alleged that the "blockades are being directed from outside [Serbia] and that these are not environmental protests".

[123][note 21] Nebojša Krstić, a pro-government political commentator, has called for the arrest of Manojlović and has said that Kreni-Promeni activists should practice "jumping off a bridge" on 27 November.

[137][138] Vučić's stance on Project Jadar changed by January, when he said that he "expects the government of Serbia to terminate all contracts with Rio Tinto".

[155] In June 2024, Financial Times published an article regarding the topic, revealing that Serbia would "give green light to Rio Tinto" and its Project Jadar.