Becirovic: Vucic's call to the UN to respect law and principles will have a wide resonance in the international community

Director of the International Institute for Middle Eastern and Balkan Studies (IFIMES) Zijad Becirovic assessed for Kosovo Online that the speech of the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, at the United Nations General Assembly, in which the emphasis was on respect for rights and principles, will have a wide resonance in the international community.

"It is, after all, an address to the UN General Assembly, 193 member countries, and in the current part of the session it was the best speech, and by all accounts it will be the same until the end of the session. It is a speech that will mark this year's regular session of the UN General Assembly," Becirovic said. 

He said that the emphasis in the speech was on respect for international law.

"This is what President Vucic often points out, and he himself is a top lawyer. Small countries especially have to comply with international law, because it is the only mechanism that can protect them. He insists on that, as well as on peace and stability. He often emphasizes that will sacrifice everything so that peace and stability are not threatened," says Becirovic.

He points out that the Serbian president also sent a message about the need for regional cooperation, as well as the EXPO, which will be hosted by Serbia in 2027, which, he says, is a world event and a great development opportunity not only for Serbia but for the entire region.

"Vucic's speech was truly a statesman's speech and it has repercussions in the international community. When the head of a state speaks, it is binding, especially if the heads of state or government, or the ministers of foreign affairs of 193 countries are listening to you. It is especially important that the dialogue of Belgrade and Pristina actually started at the UN. But the previous government under the leadership of Boris Tadic and Vuk Jeremic shifted that dialogue from the UN level, where Serbia always has two-thirds support, to a regional integration such as the EU," he says.

He adds that the EU is not fundamentally a subject of international law.

"The EU is not the one who can solve such problems, nor can it successfully end the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina. That has been shown. Now we have a situation where Kosovo is a frozen conflict, and I can freely say that the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina has been euthanized. In this format and form, it can no longer be conducted or it is pointless to conduct it after ten years without any results. There is talk of reaching a comprehensive legally binding agreement on the normalization of relations, and we have denormalization every day, a new abnormal situation," Becirovic assesses.

He reminds that ten years ago the situation was better than today, after a decade of unsuccessful negotiations with the mediation of the EU.

He added that everything said by the President of Serbia will have an impact and emphasized that the bilateral meetings that Vucic had with world leaders on the sidelines of the General Assembly, including UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, will be particularly significant.

"It is really a great job that has been done and I see that even President Vucic does not hide his enthusiasm for everything that has been done, and of course it will have repercussions on the EU itself, not only because of the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, but also when it's about the enlargement process. There is a real danger that if the enlargement process is not implemented in due time, some countries may change their geopolitical orientation," says Becirovic.