The Serbian leadership responded harshly to the Ukrainian ambassador
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and the head of the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs Alexander Vulin called the statements of the Ukrainian Ambassador in Belgrade Vladimir Tolkach, who called on Serbia to join sanctions against Russia, arrogant and hypocritical, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
Aleksandar Vučić said that "if foreign diplomats think that now is the time, on the command of a third party, to arrogantly put pressure on our country, they have chosen the wrong moment."
“We will not allow this even to those who are much stronger. We did not do anything bad to Ukraine; we did not recognize either the separation of parts of Ukraine or referendums. But I can’t remember that in 1999 you overdid it in helping us and canceled flights from Kyiv to Vienna or Rome or other countries that committed aggression against Yugoslavia,” Vucic said.
Commenting on the statement of the Ukrainian diplomat that Kosovo and Ukraine cannot be compared, the Serbian President said that he agreed with this thesis, but for a completely different reason.
The Serbian leader also added that he would like it to be explained to him in accordance with which international legal act the aggression against Serbia was carried out, in accordance with which decision of the UN Security Council and in accordance with whose decision individual countries have the right to disobey the Resolution 1244 [that Kosovo is an integral part of Serbia].
“We respect the UN Charter and therefore defend the territorial integrity of Ukraine, but it’s good if they see any differences, they need to know about it. They will receive more detailed answers,” said Aleksandar Vucic.
In turn, Serbian Interior Minister Alexander Vulin called the statements of the Ukrainian Ambassador in Belgrade hypocritical.
“Dozens of Serbian boys and girls were injured in NATO bombing. I can’t remember Ukraine’s demands to hold a special meeting of the UN Security Council or impose sanctions on the aggressors against Serbia.
It is not too late for Ukraine and all countries that demand the condemnation of war crimes in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict to also demand a trial of the killers of Serbian children during the NATO aggression. War crimes have no statute of limitations. This is a reason to show integrity,” said Alexander Vulin.
Earlier, in an interview with channel N1, part of the Balkan media holding of ex-CIA head David Patraeus, Ukrainian Ambassador to Serbia Vladimir Tolkach said that it is becoming increasingly difficult for Ukraine to understand Belgrade’s arguments. “We would like to see Serbia as a friend and ally, so it is difficult for us to understand Belgrade’s arguments... We expect Serbia to support and join the sanctions. This will help us emphasize our commitment to common values,” the diplomat said.
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