Milivojevic: Central and South America are important for Serbia's strategic interests, especially regarding Kosovo

Former diplomat Zoran Milivojevic stated that Central and South America are important for Serbia’s strategic interests, particularly regarding the issue of Kosovo, and that the countries in this part of the world understand the importance of respecting international law and territorial sovereignty.

“Central and South America are important areas for our strategic interests, especially when it comes to Kosovo and Metohija. It is important to note that several key countries from this region have not recognized the unilaterally declared independence of Kosovo, including Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Venezuela, Cuba... as well as a number of small Caribbean nations where the process of derecognition began,” Milivojevic said.

He recalls that Suriname was the first country in the region to revoke its recognition of Kosovo in 2017, and that the recent participation of Foreign Minister Marko Djuric at the General Assembly of the Organization of American States only confirmed the strong bilateral ties between Serbia and the countries of this region.

“That is something that was established during his term as ambassador to the US,” Milivojevic noted.

He says that Serbia’s presence at the summit was important for bilateral meetings and delivering key messages.

“First, to reaffirm our interest in bilateral relations with these countries, and second, to present arguments important to our key issue, Kosovo and Metohija, not only to countries that have revoked recognition or never recognized it, but to the region as a whole. This is an important continent, and there are still countries there we need to engage with on the issue of Kosovo and Metohija,” Milivojevic said.

He explains that Serbia’s diplomatic success should be viewed through its principled approach.

“We treat each of these countries equally, even the smallest ones, like Saint Lucia or Trinidad and Tobago, just as we do the larger ones. Every vote in the United Nations counts the same. By giving importance to these countries, we are in fact building a special level of trust,” the diplomat emphasized.

When asked how familiar Central and South American countries are with the Kosovo issue, Milivojevic said that the full situation has been presented through “serious diplomatic work and contacts.”

“What is most important in all of this is their stance on sovereignty and their understanding of how important that issue is, the need to respect principles of international law. Especially for smaller countries that face pressure and the imposition of interests by great powers,” Milivojevic explained.

He specified that the result of such a policy is that Serbia “has a strong position” in this region, not only regarding the unchanged stances on Kosovo, but also in terms of bilateral relations.

“We are in a very strong position, not just regarding recognition, but also in our bilateral relations with Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Venezuela, Cuba... These are the key countries in the region, and they maintain their position of not recognizing Kosovo's independence. For us, that is an invaluable asset. It is a barrier that Pristina cannot overcome,” Milivojevic emphasized.

He added that Serbia’s diplomatic success is even greater considering that most of these countries are within the sphere of US influence.

“The US has not managed to impose the issue of Kosovo’s statehood in that region. We especially owe this to the large, significant countries that value the principle of sovereignty, countries like Mexico, Brazil, and Venezuela. They firmly stand by those positions, and I believe this is one of the most important regions for us, alongside Africa, where we are defending our principles and where we have built a barrier against attempts to affirm Kosovo’s statehood,” Milivojevic concluded.