Vučić: The only thing I can say is that I did my best to protect Serbia

SManalysis

Special envoys of five countries arrived in Belgrade to meet with the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić.

SOURCE: B92 FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2023 | 18:28

After the meeting, they addressed the public.

"Today, we had a very difficult conversation," Vučić said at the beginning of his speech.

"An open and serious discussion. What we agree on is that a frozen conflict is not a solution, and that when you have a frozen conflict, it is a matter of time when irresponsible individuals will unfreeze it and endanger peace and stability in the Balkans," he said.

Vučić said that as the president of Serbia today, he was unequivocally faced with the problems and challenges that would be placed before our country if we did not agree with the proposed plan.

"Under these and such conditions, we asked the four, plus Miroslav Lajčak, to help all of us overcome the turbulence we are facing in Kosovo, because we believe that it is high time to form the CSM, which was not only promised but also signed 10 years ago. It is a matter of urgency, since only after that, conversation is possible, including any kind of normalization of the situation," he added.

He pointed out that Western diplomats welcomed Serbia's progress on the European path.

Vučić pointed out that there are difficult days and decisions ahead of us.

"There are no nice or sweet talks here, and I can say that I did my best to protect and guard Serbia, which I will continue to do," concluded President Vučić.

Following Vucic’s meeting with EU and US representatives, EU Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue Miroslav Lajcak said: "We had an intense, difficult but also an open talk. President Aleksandar Vucic demonstrated a responsible approach and the will to make difficult decisions in the interest of peace and Serbia’s European prospects".

As a reminder, the EU special envoy for dialogue Miroslav Lajčak, the US envoy for the Western Balkans Gabriel Escobar, the advisor for foreign policy and security of the German chancellor Jens Plettner, the advisor for foreign policy of the French President Emmanuel Bonne and the advisor for foreign policy and security of the Prime Minister of Italy Francesco Talò were present at the meeting. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic discussed with them further steps in the process of normalizing relations with Pristina.