Dacic: Kurti will have a million ideas to prove he has what he doesn't - statehood

Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ivica Dacic, commenting on the moves by Pristina and Kosovo's Prime Minister Albin Kurti that jeopardize Serbs in Kosovo, such as abolishing the Serbian dinar, says that Kurti will have a million ideas to prove he has something he actually doesn't, and that is statehood.

"Kurti will have a million ideas related to highlighting something he doesn't have, and that is statehood. His idea is to cause new escalations," Dacic said today on TV Pink.

As he added, just like someone who needs to prove themselves because everyone else knows the opposite, Pristina wants to write "Republic of Kosovo" everywhere.

"It's like writing the name of the show on this studio mug, as if the citizens don't know which show it is, or you're not famous enough, so you need to write it, but you don't need that. However, someone who doesn't have something will write it everywhere just to prove it. They even wrote 'Republic of Kosovo' on the ballots just to prove they have a state. The problem is that the international community tolerates it and says they cannot pressure Kurti. Well, they can't do anything," the head of Serbian diplomacy said.

He emphasizes that the situation regarding Kosovo is turbulent, and a state policy is needed that will be based on Serbia preserving territorial integrity and sovereignty while also pursuing wise policy and other national interests.

"We need a wise policy that will be based on not recognizing Kosovo's independence and allowing UN membership, while having, on the other hand, a smart policy to achieve all that without compromising national interests. I think that will be the policy the next government will follow," Dacic said.

Commenting on criticisms of the meeting between Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs James O'Brien, Dacic says that, regarding the region he deals with, O'Brien is an important address for Serbia.

"I guess everyone should be satisfied that Vucic met with him because the result of that meeting is the statement of the State Department, which at least shows an understanding of the problems faced by Serbs in Kosovo, all of which violate Resolution 1244," Dacic said, referring to the State Department's statement calling on Kosovo to reconsider the decision to abolish the dinar.

Speaking about the pressures Serbia faces from the West, Dacic says they "do not hesitate to openly say that we need to do this or that; this is possible, that is not."

"They say it's nothing personal and say we should do it before entering the EU. We say, okay, when is the entry, but no one tells us, they just say do it, and then we'll see when the entry is," Dacic says, adding that Serbia's goal is still EU accession because it is due to us and geostrategic.

He also mentioned his visit to Uganda, where he attended the Non-Aligned Movement summit.

"Brussels doesn't like that I was in Uganda; they think we shouldn't deal with such countries, they say if you want to join the EU, you can't be in the Non-Aligned Movement. Alright, we are no longer a member, although we are founders, but we help that movement," he says.

Dacic emphasizes that the Non-Aligned Movement is objectively politically on our side regarding territorial integrity and sovereignty, pointing out that a large number of member countries of that movement have not recognized Kosovo.

"We must actively participate; it would be difficult to have bilateral meetings with all those countries," he notes, citing the closure of the embassy in Tanzania after October 5, 2000, which recognized Kosovo after some time.

"We need to seek partners and friends; they understand us a little better than those from the West because they had similar problems. We will continue good relations with those countries," Dacic said.