Dobrilovic: Kosovo is far from being a serious, democratic, rule-of-law state

Candidate of the Freedom Party of Austria (FPO) in the upcoming elections for the European Parliament, Konstantin Dobrilovic, stated that unilateral measures by Pristina did not contribute to the dialogue and also criticized the interference of social democrats and "greens" in Serbia's internal affairs, describing Andreas Schieder's attack on the Serbian authorities after the elections, citing alleged irregularities, as a bad move, as it represented an intrusion into the internal affairs of a sovereign state.

Dobrilovic announced to Kosovo Online that, if elected, he planned to fight for the citizens in the European Parliament, advocating for the return of the European Union to important everyday life topics. He emphasized his dedication to the Western Balkans, including the situation regarding Kosovo.

"Time will show that the policy pursued by the FPO is good not only for Austria but also for the EU and that changes are necessary. My task will be to bring the EU closer to the citizens again. The current situation is such that we have Brussels centralization. While citizens have problems in their everyday lives, the EU deals with questions like how many watts a light bulb can have or what color a banana must be... I will also focus on the Western Balkans, including Kosovo and Metohija," Dobrilovic said, expressing gratitude to his party for the trust and the opportunity to run on its list for the European Parliament.

Commenting on unilateral measures by the Kosovo Government, such as the announcement of abolishing the dinar, Dobrilovic pointed out that the FPO's stance was known, emphasizing the need to respect UN Security Council Resolution 1244.

"It is necessary to respect Resolution 1244 and all other resolutions and agreements reached between Belgrade and Pristina. However, we often see that Belgrade fulfills its obligations while Pristina adheres to some of its principles, and fails to fulfill agreements, with criticisms from Belgrade, thinking that it will help itself in that way. Unilateral measures are condemnable because dialogue is not possible if only one side is willing, while the other is not, as Pristina is not," Dobrilovic emphasized.

For him, as per Resolution 1244, Kosovo is an integral part of Serbia, far from being a serious, democratic, rule-of-law state.

He also indicated that his party would not support efforts for Kosovo's membership in international organizations.

"We must adhere to international law. If everyone violates international law, then, in essence, we don't need it. Based on UN Resolution 1244, Kosovo and Metohija have nothing to seek in international organizations," Dobrilovic stated.

Regarding attempts by Kosovo authorities to appropriate Serbian churches and monasteries, he responded that such attempts were unrealistic.

"These are attempts by the Pristina authorities to claim something that is not theirs. I would ask these people - how do you claim something that you burned and destroyed in pogroms and wanted to obliterate? You are claiming monasteries and churches that are cultural heritage protected by UNESCO. We know whose monasteries and temples these are; they belong to the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Serbs who cherish their sanctities. All these attempts to claim something that does not belong to them will not succeed," Dobrilovic stated clearly.

He agrees with his party colleague, the FPO list leader in the upcoming European elections, Harald Vilimsky, that only Serbia can join the European Union.

"Serbia is a serious state, as it has shown in recent decades through economic development and all legal and state entities. Serbia has demonstrated that its place is in the European family, which cannot be said for other states in the region," Dobrilovic pointed out.

Regarding the attacks on Serbia coming from the social democratic faction and the Greens in the European Parliament after the parliamentary elections in the country, he says that all of them represent interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign state.

"Imagine that this is done by a man who belongs to a party that couldn't even organize elections for the president of its own party... The problem is that the Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPO) lives only on empty words and clichés. They interfere in the elections of a sovereign state, while Andreas Schieder was present at the elections in Serbia and signed that everything went smoothly and in order. He returned to Austria and started criticizing the government and elections in Serbia. I think that was not a good move, and EU citizens, especially those of Serbian origin, will realize that the Social Democratic Party is not their friend, and they will think well on June 9 and see that Harald Vilimsky, the leader of our list, is a friend of Serbia," Dobrilovic emphasized.

Speaking about the Serbian community in Austria, he assessed that it was well-organized and integrated but lacked greater involvement in political life.

"It's time for the Serbian community to have more representatives in Austrian politics," Dobrilovic believes.

He also notes that over the past 15 years, the FPO has shown openness to the Serbian community.

"The FPO had people of Serbian origin who were on its lists, and some who ran for office also entered assemblies. This is a call to other parties to fulfill their promises and tell the Serbian community that there is a place for them in their parties, to get involved, and let's see which Serbian candidates will be on the lists of those parties," Dobrilovic said.

He also assessed that the EU had a future but needed to be reformed.

"We need to return from the centralist Brussels political spectrum to the homes of citizens, to truly debate their problems, not irrelevant issues dealt with by Brussels. It's time for a turnaround; it's time for Europe to return to its Christian roots to survive," he said.

Dobrilovic also states that Europe must be wise in order to be prepared for all challenges.

"We see what is happening in the world. Major powers pursue their policies, and we in Europe must have our firm, independent, and clear policy to face the challenges that will arise, not a centralist Brussels that is insensitive to real problems," Dobrilovic said.

In this regard, he also commented on numerous protests in EU countries, pointing out that it was the legitimate right of citizens to take to the streets and express their dissatisfaction.

"We witness protests in Germany that are ongoing and have a significant impact in Europe. It is interesting to see how some media now treat them and call on citizens to come out and oppose the protests. Imagine if something like this happened in another country; they would immediately threaten with the cudgel of freedom of speech and human rights. These are just the beginnings of major protests," Dobrilovic believes.

He dismissed claims from political opponents that FPO was a threat to democracy.

"Those who threaten people are the real danger to democracy. Protests are freedom of speech and expression. Every time the elections approach, there is nervousness in the political structures of our opponents because they see that the FPO is a party that represents the interests of the people of Austria. Therefore, of course, the media machinery and other people 'rise up' to demonize the FPO. We are ready for that because we have been fighting windmills for decades. We will show that in Austria, one can come to power through peaceful democratic means," Dobrilovic concluded.