According to a report by Justice Finance International in February 2024, Chinese mining company Zijin is rapidly expanding its copper and gold mining operations in the Serbian cities of Bor and Majdanpek, leading to allegations from local communities, farmers, and landowners that the company has confiscated their property while the Serbian government and justice system ignore their concerns. Since Zijin began operations in Bor in 2018, nearby villagers have faced severe disruptions to their lives, with increasing air and water pollution harming residents' health and mining activities altering the course of a major river, resulting in disastrous consequences for surrounding farmland irrigation. The report states that Zijin has carried out large-scale transformations of the local landscape without basic oversight mechanisms, leaving villagers desperate for information and worried about their future.

We invited Zijin Mining to comment on these allegations in March 2024. The company provided a response.