6 minutes agoVuciq: These are the hardest periods since Kosovo recognition
Periskopi(6 years ago)
(6 years ago)At Serbia's presidency after the meeting, Aleksandar Vuciq and Russian diplomacy head Sergey Lavrov have spoken to the media and the main topic was Kosovo. Serbia's president said he respects all those who participate in the negotiations, but that he should assess his friends. “As president, I was also worried about [...]
Serbia's president said he respects all those who participate in the negotiations, but that he should assess his friends.
“As president, I was also concerned about solutions to the Kosovo crisis. I don't want to deceive anybody, it's obvious that we're in an extremely difficult time to make plans. We'll have to be extremely careful and attentive when it comes to any ideas that are presented to us. The issue is clear. Any solution requires approval of the Russian Federation. Serbia is ready to listen to all actors in the negotiations, but it must respect its friends,” said Vuciq.
He specifically stressed that difficult times await Serbia.
I want to tell our people: Hard times are ahead of us, but we must be united. These are probably the most difficult periods since recognising Kosovo 12 years ago,” said Vuciq.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he will support all initiatives that will help Belgrade and Pristina reach an agreement.
Kosovo's “problem remains unresolved, and Russia believes that the EU should not be isolated from its obligations and must meet them fairly and fight for the realisation of those solutions and agreements that have already been reached for the Serb community of municipalities, which has now been sabotaged by Pristina. With Russia's suggestion, Serbia's territorial integrity is confirmed at Resolution 1244”, Lavrov said.
Asked by the media what position Russia would have if Serbia accepted an EU bid, for example, giving Kosovo the green light to “go further”, in exchange for considerable financial assistance and EU integration, Lavrov said the question should be made Serbia rather than him.
“We know Serbia's position and that Belgrade will be guided by national interests of the state and its people,”, followed by the Serbian president's response.
“Kindly, he responded kindly that this is a question for us, not for our Russian friends. If I need to be clear, when it comes to the question of whether we will say we agree to recognise Kosovo in exchange for being a member of the EU, our response is no”, Vuciq has indicated, however added that this will not be an easy situation for Serbia.
