Vucic: Community of Municipalities must be formed for Serbs to return to Pristina's institutions

BELGRADE - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic says the establishment of a Community of Serb Municipalities in Kosovo-Metohija is a condition for a return of local Serbs to Pristina's institutions.

"It is a condition set by Serbs in Kosovo-Metohija, not by Serbia. It must be formed before a return to the institutions can happen. The Serbs can be police officers in the north (of Kosovo-Metohija), but only when they have a Community of Serb Municipalities," Vucic said on a Happy TV talk show on Monday evening.

When asked what international negotiators said about that, Vucic responded that some would like a Community of Serb Municipalities to be an organisation "printing pencils and lighters with CSM written on them."

Commenting on Serbia-US relations, Vucic said good ties with Washington were very important for Serbia.

"The Americans are not on Serbia's side now - they are looking for a way to act in a rational and serious manner rather than waste their strength and energy on someone else because they have focused all their strength on Russia," he said.

"Can we make some use of that? Perhaps, tactically, but strategically, it would not be easy to do. In any case, good relations with America are important to us, whether someone likes it or not," Vucic said.