Vucevic: Declaration a foundation of national policy

BELGRADE - Serbian PM Milos Vucevic asked MPs on Tuesday to support a Declaration on Protection of the National and Political Rights and the Joint Future of the Serbs.

Presenting the draft declaration in parliament, Vucevic said the declaration was the foundation of the national policy and that all crucial factors had been involved in its preparation.

"The declaration is not a result of anyone's wishes but a programme of our salvation and survival, a platform and an umbrella under which we need to stand," he said, adding that the document was not "an act of defiance, but an essential need."

The declaration was adopted at the All-Serbian Assembly in Belgrade on June 2 and in the Republika Srpska National Assembly on July 2.

"By creating a better society for all Serbian citizens, Serbia has raised its head. And today, freed of delusions and aware that it is only through its own work and wisdom that it can survive the challenges of today, it is building its path, the Serbian path, a path of survival and preservation of our identity," Vucevic said.

Vucevic said that, above all, the declaration was a result of work and efforts by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik.

"This is a programme that was also adopted by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska on July 2 and that has received the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Porfirije of the Serbian Orthodox Church. We need to vote on the 49 points of this programme, which proclaims our togetherness and unity as a people loudly and clearly, in a friendly manner and with good intentions, with respect for everything and everyone," Vucevic said.

He said the declaration noted that the Serbian nation represented a single whole and that the All-Serbian Assembly should be held biennially, as well as that a process of national reconciliation would be carried out.

"It recommends that the institutions of Serbia and Republika Srpska act in a united and coordinated manner to stop the assimilation of Serbs in countries in the region as well as worldwide. Kosovo-Metohija is an unalienable part of the Republic of Serbia and its territorial integrity, guaranteed by international law and UNSCR 1244, will be preserved," Vucevic said.

Serbs in Kosovo-Metohija and all other citizens loyal to Serbia, as well as Serbian monasteries, churches, medieval fortresses, private property, cemeteries and other endangered structures must be protected, he said.

He also noted Serbia did not support a Srebrenica resolution as it was an attempt of pinning the blame on the entire Serbian nation.