Talha Ozturk
18 January 2023•Update: 18 January 2023
BELGRADE, Serbia
The European Parliament calling on Serbia to align with European Union foreign policy is hypocritical, said President Aleksandar Vucic at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Wednesday.
"Everything I heard, no one wants to hear or see that there is a different point of view, the only thing they are interested in is an independent Kosovo, sanctions on Russia, there is no opposition,'' said Vucic, responding to the European Parliament report calling on Belgrade to align with European Union foreign policy.
Vucic said that he was told the job of the EU is to seek harmonization, but that in the report, “an intensification of dialogue based on mutual recognition is requested, that a series of escalating moves by Serbia and actors supported by Serbia be condemned, which include illegitimate blockades, attacks, and threats of military action, that Kosovo's independence is irreversible, and that EU members who don't recognize Kosovo do that," said Vucic.
Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic also called the resolution another example of hypocrisy.
''Before lecturing Serbia on its failure to align with EU foreign policy, the EP should align with the fundamental principles of international law regarding the protection of the territorial integrity of world states,” said Dacic, referring to Serbia’s claim that Kosovo is its territory.
Kosovo broke from Serbia in 1999 and declared independence in 2008. It aspires for EU membership, and it is recognized by France, Germnay, Italy, the US, UK, and Türkiye, among others.
But Serbia has not recognized Kosovo’s independence and sees its former province as its territory.
The EP report stressed the importance of full alignment of Western Balkan countries with the EU's foreign and security policy, especially with sanctions towards third countries.
The report also expressed regret that Serbia’s alignment with EU policies is at a low level, especially in terms of sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine war.
They said Serbia as a country that wants to join the bloc has to abide by its common values.
