In an age when almost every piece of land on Earth belongs to a recognized state, the idea of starting a new country may seem almost impossible. Yet 20-year-old Daniel Jackson, who has British and Australian citizenship, says that’s exactly what he did. Jackson is the self-proclaimed president of the Free Republic of Vardis, a small patch of forest and sand along the Danube River between Serbia and Croatia, which he says is worth it. terra nullius – The land was not claimed by any country. His project has attracted thousands of online supporters, a volunteer government, and even his own passport. But Jackson himself cannot enter the territory he claims to rule. He says Croatian authorities removed him and imposed a lifetime ban after he attempted to seize the land in 2023, leaving the future president running his micronation from exile.
Disputed land between Serbia and Croatia
The legal reasoning behind Verdis stems from a technical dispute about the borders along the Danube River, which forms much of the border between Croatia and Serbia. Historically, the border followed the course of the river. However, over time, the channel of the Danube changed, causing the two countries to interpret the border differently. Croatia argues that the border should follow historical cadastral maps, while Serbia considers the border to be the central line of the Danube. Due to this disagreement, many small tracts of land remain outside the claims of both countries. Under international law, such places may sometimes be described as “terra nullius”, a Latin term meaning “nobody’s land” – territory not claimed by any sovereign state. The two areas in this disputed portion are described as follows. One is Gornja Siga, where Czech politician Vit Jedlička announced the liberal micronation Liberland in 2015. The other is Pocket 3, a sandy, wooded strip that Jackson claims as Verdi’s. Jackson explains the reasoning behind the claim simply: “This piece of land was unclaimed because neither Croatia nor Serbia wanted it,” he says. “Croatia says this piece of land is part of Serbia, while Serbia considers its border to be the central line of the Danube. “This allowed the oldest active claimants, which in this case are the Verdis, to have title to the land under international law.”
A teenager’s experiment in nation building
The idea began years ago, when Jackson was in school. Born in Australia to British parents, he spent his childhood in Melbourne and attended Waverley Christian College, a private school in the city. He was just 14 years old when he and a group of friends began searching online maps for unusual geographical anomalies. Jackson later said, “It was kind of an experiment – we wanted to do something unique. And I thought: Let’s make it a reality.” Some of his colleagues were school friends; Others were people from south-eastern Europe whom he met online. Together they discovered a deserted area along the Danube and decided to try to turn it into a country.
The self-proclaimed Free Republic of Vardis is located on Pocket 3 along the Danube River, near Pocket 1 where Liberland is located.
The group took its name Verdis, derived from the Latin word “viridis”, meaning green, reflecting their emphasis on environmental protection. The land itself is small, about 124 acres, about half a square kilometre. In size, it is slightly larger than Vatican City, the world’s smallest internationally recognized country, and is the size of approximately 75 football fields. Apart from forest and scrub along the river banks, the area has never been permanently settled.
Declaration of the Independent Republic of Verdi
Jackson formally proclaimed the Free Republic of Verdi in 2019, when he was elected president by his fellow supporters. From there, the group began preparations to achieve statehood. He created a flag with light blue and white horizontal stripes and designed a coat of arms combining symbols from both Serbian and Croatian cultures. The emblem includes a white stork as the national bird, oak trees representing unity and strength, wavy lines symbolizing the Danube and symbols reflecting both Serbian and Croatian heritage. A government was also formed, consisting of ministers responsible for foreign affairs, internal affairs, infrastructure and defence, as well as volunteer ambassadors and officials. Two offices were set up, one in the United Kingdom and the other in Serbia, staffed by volunteers who helped run the project. The micronation has drafted basic laws, written a constitution, and begun issuing passports and identity cards, although none are recognized internationally.
Citizenship, e-Resident and a Gen Z following
Most of Verdi’s development has taken place online. Jackson says the project has attracted thousands of supporters, especially among young internet users interested in alternative governance and digital citizenship. So far, about 3,000 people have applied to become Verdesians, many through the e-Residency route that allows supporters to participate in state institutions digitally.
Daniel Jackson at his Vardis embassy in Dover, Kent, Credit: Gary Stone via The Sun
According to Verdis officials, the number of physical citizens, issuing passports and identity cards, was to be around 400 by the end of 2025. The e-Residency program has its own application process. Potential members must first purchase an e-Resident Plus plan costing €50 per year, keep it for at least 11 months and then apply for citizenship. Applicants must either have support from two existing Verdesian citizens or provide a DBS background check, be active on Verdes forums, commit to relocating to the area in the future and pay a €300 processing fee. Applicants may be fast-tracked if they make significant contributions to the project or are deemed “extremely beneficial to the development of the country.”
first attempt to colonize the land
For many years, Verdis existed largely online. But in October 2023, Jackson and a group of supporters attempted to physically take over the area. He traveled along the Danube and planted his blue and white flag on the land, in what he described as the “settlement phase” of his nation-building effort. A program was planned so that different groups of Verdi citizens would rotate through the area over the following months, ensuring a constant presence. But this effort lasted for barely a day. “It was short-lived,” Jackson later told CNN Travel. According to him, Croatian police arrived the next morning, demolished the camp and detained those living there for questioning. “They broke the camp,” he said. The group says they were held for about 12 hours before being deported. Most of the participants received three-month bans from Croatia, but Jackson and his vice-president Hector Bowles, who splits his time between Dover and Bulgaria, were issued lifetime bans on the grounds that they were deemed a “threat to homeland security”.
Croatia’s response
The government of Croatia has rejected the idea that the land qualifies as terra nullius. In a statement to CNN, the Croatian Foreign Ministry described the Vardis project, as well as the nearby Liberland claim, as “provocative actions without any legal basis.” The ministry said Croatia was only fulfilling its obligation to protect its external border and the Schengen Area, Europe’s passport-free travel zone. Officials also rejected the idea that disputed borders automatically constitute unclaimed territory. Both Croatia and Serbia, the ministry said, “share understanding and respect for the fundamental principle of international law: the fact that pending delimitation does not render any place open to occupation by a third party as terra nullius (‘no man’s land’).”
life in exile
Today Jackson runs Verdis from the United Kingdom and describes himself as effectively “in exile”. He lives with a family friend in Dover and works as a freelance game developer for the online platform Roblox, along with organizing the Vardis government. Funding for the project comes from a mixture of donations, sales of goods and a citizenship-by-investment scheme. In one example, cryptocurrency enthusiasts raised more than $37,000 through a non-staking digital token called $Verdis. The government also pays for the ministers’ travel costs when they attend meetings or attempt field visits. But reaching Verdis itself is becoming difficult. Jackson says Croatian authorities have installed cameras along the beach, and patrol boats immediately stop ships approaching land. “If you sail your boat into territorial waters even for 10 minutes, a Croatian police boat will be on its way very quickly,” he says. Some of Vardis’ boats have also gone missing after the 2023 deportation, which Jackson suspects were confiscated by Croatian authorities.
Protests and constant tension
Vardis’ supporters have also demonstrated. Members of the micronation have organized a protest outside the Croatian embassy in London and accused authorities of blocking access to the area. Jackson says nationalist groups in the Balkans have also posted videos online showing the burning of the Vardis flag. Despite the setbacks, he emphasizes that the project is far from over. “I still believe that sooner or later we will return to our land and that Croatia will have to respect international law, including the territorial integrity of Verdi,” he told CNN Travel. “We will never back down from our goal. We hope to have positive relations with Croatia in the future. We look forward to working with them.”
A country that currently exists mostly online
For now, Verdis works with a temporary government while Jackson is unable to reach the territory he claims. The group recently opened a second embassy in Novi Sad, Serbia, hoping to build support among young Serbs and Croats interested in the idea of a neutral microstate that promotes peaceful coexistence. Jackson himself says that he does not intend to remain president forever. His long-term plan is to eventually step down and become a citizen of Verdis, and hand over leadership to someone else once the country is established. Of the Croatian authorities he said, “They have not tried to take over us and I think they are angry that we have not given up our claim to the land.” “Maybe they’re worried we’re going to become a lawless state.” For Jackson, the question is not whether Verdis will exist, but rather when. “We have protested outside the Croatian embassy, they are trying to silence us as much as possible,” he says. But he believes the experiment will continue. “It’s a matter of time.”