Djuric: Serbia grateful to Russia for principled stance on Kosovo-Metohija

MOSCOW - Serbia is grateful to Russia for its firm and principled stance on the Autonomous Province of Kosovo-Metohija, Serbian FM Marko Djuric said on Monday after a meeting with Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, thanking Russia for supporting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Serbia.

"We hope that, going forward, tectonic changes in the international community will open up greater space for resolving this issue in line with international law and in a civilised manner," Djuric said at a press conference with Lavrov.

He said that, exactly 17 years ago, international law had been trampled underfoot in Serbia.

"An illegal, unilateral declaration of independence of the so-called 'Kosovo' took place in Kosovo-Metohija. It was done in a manner contrary to international law and contrary to UNSCR 1244 and contrary to the will of the majority of Serbian citizens, who were never consulted in a referendum - even in Kosovo-Metohija, there was no vote on this issue," Djuric said.

He added that Serbia hoped its relations with the Russian Federation would reach their full potential.

"We hope the traditional and friendly relations will reach their full potential and capacity in the coming period as international circumstances develop, and we will be working intensively with our Russian partners and friends," Djuric said.

He noted that Serbia advocated a peaceful resolution of all conflicts in the international community.

"Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has publicly offered that Serbia hosts all discussions on overcoming the Ukraine crisis, and I reiterated Serbia's readiness for that in today's consultations, and we hope we will soon be in a situation where we will see peace on the European continent," Djuric said.

He said the energy sector had also been discussed and that it was important for Serbia to be able to count on support from Russian friends when it comes to reliable supplies of natural gas and other fuels.

"We want Serbian citizens not to become collateral damage in any sanctions. We do not support sanctions as a mechanism given that, in the 1990s, we experienced a situation where ordinary citizens of Serbia were the victims of sanctions like these," Djuric said.

"For us, the most important thing is that Serbian citizens do not suffer as a result of sanctions against (Serbia's majority-Russian owned oil company) NIS and we discussed that as well, and we will continue the discussions," he added.

He also said the Serbian president would have an opportunity to discuss the topic with Russian officials.

Djuric noted that Serbia was the only European country that had not imposed sanctions on Russia.

"As recently as yesterday, President (Aleksandar) Vucic reiterated our stance that we will not do that, we will continue to act in a principled manner and in line with the historical character of our relations," Djuric said.

He noted that Serbia was on its European path but that it would not forget or neglect its traditional friendships.

"In the coming period, we will continue to cherish and develop constructive relations with the Russian Federation as well as with other partners and friends in the international community," Djuric said.

He added that he was confident 2025 would be a good year for cooperation with Russia.