With barely 14 years old, Daniel Jackson conceived—along with a group of friends—the creation of a country in an unclaimed territory between Serbia and Croatia. Today, at 20, he heads the self-proclaimed Free Republic of Verdis, which counts 400 accepted citizens and an still uncertain future.

The Birth of Verdis: A Micronation in Eastern Europe

he story of Verdis began as a teenage experiment. In 2017, Daniel Jackson, then a student in Melbourne, discovered—along with some friends—a strip of forest unclaimed on the Danube border between Croatia and Serbia. The area had never been inhabited since the dissolution of Yugoslavia, which, according to Jackson, legitimized the right to found a new country.

They decided to call it Verdis, inspired by the Latin word viridis, meaning green, as a symbol of a nation with an environmental focus.

Over time, the idea evolved from a simple pastime into an organized project. Jackson and his collaborators formed a government, established laws, designed a flag, and created a citizenship system that, so far, has received more than 15,000 applications, although only 400 have been accepted.

This rapid growth turned Verdis into one of the most talked-about micronations in the world, sometimes compared to Liberland, another self-proclaimed nation that emerged in disputed land in the same region.

The young Australian proclaimed himself president and, although he assures that everything started as “an experiment,” the initiative quickly took unexpected dimensions. However, the lack of international recognition and border tensions in the Balkans complicated his plans to establish a permanent settlement.

The President’s Expulsion and Exile

In 2023, Jackson and a group of citizens attempted to physically settle in the territory of Verdis. For weeks, they performed cleaning tasks, camping, and surveying to demonstrate their presence in the area. But their initiative was abruptly halted when Croatian police forcibly expelled them, confiscated part of their equipment, and issued a lifetime ban from entering Croatia for Jackson and his vice president, Héctor Bowles.

This setback was a harsh blow to the micronation, as reaching Verdis is impossible without crossing Croatian territory. Since then, Jackson has been in exile, living in Dover, England, where he works as a freelance video game developer on Roblox. Nevertheless, he continues to present himself as president in office, wears a suit in official meetings, and keeps patriotic symbols like Verdis flags and coats of arms in his home.

Exile has not stopped his determination. Jackson continues promoting his country on social media, in international micronation forums, and through fundraising initiatives. In fact, the project recently received over $37,000 through cryptocurrency donations, which has enabled financing political activities and sustaining Verdis’s digital infrastructure.

Despite the lack of recognition, the movement has inspired hundreds who see in Verdis an alternative political and social model—an experimental space with ideals of neutrality and international cooperation.

Between Legality and Dream: the Future of Verdis

One of the main challenges for Verdis is international legality. Jackson claims that, under international law, the first active claimant of an ownerless territory can be considered its legitimate occupant. In his view, Croatia and Serbia never officially claimed these lands, which would enable him to consider himself sovereign.

However, the reality is more complex: most international law experts consider that these lands are in dispute and, therefore, cannot be appropriated in that way.

Croatia’s stance is clear: Verdis is not part of its territory, but neither does it recognize the existence of a new country on its border. This places Jackson in a difficult political limbo. The young man has attempted to take cases to Croatian and European courts, but most are rejected on legal technicalities.

Still, his vision does not waver. He dreams that Verdis will be recognized as a neutral state—a center for NGO cooperation and a country committed to humanitarian and environmental causes. In his cabinet, several ministers actively participate in aid projects for Ukraine and other social causes, reflecting the micronation’s more altruistic side.

In a curious gesture, Jackson says that if Verdis ever consolidates as a real country, he plans to resign from the presidency and become an ordinary citizen. In his view, his role has been to initiate the project, not to stay in power forever.

The Free Republic of Verdis is, at the same time, a political curiosity and a social phenomenon. What began as a teenage game has become a project with hundreds of followers, a president in exile, and a dream of sovereignty. Daniel Jackson insists: sooner or later, they will return to their land.

Reference:

• National website of Verdis. Link
• The Guardian/‘We would love to enter Eurovision!’ The boy who saw some unclaimed land – and founded his own country. Link

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