Soskic criticizes Israel over its treatment of Gaza

Student List parliamentary candidate Dejan Soskic criticized Israel over its treatment of Gaza.

Appearing on the program “Stav dana BiH” on Newsmax TV, Soskic was asked about his position on sanctions against Russia and replied that it was not right to encourage aggression by anyone, particularly against neighboring countries.

“It is certainly not right to encourage aggression by anyone, anywhere, particularly against neighboring countries. But we have seen aggression against one of the world’s oldest civilizations—Persia, or Iran—without any talk of sanctions. We see what is happening in the Middle East and what Israel is doing to territories that are not part of its territory, such as Gaza. Not to mention incursions into neighboring countries such as Lebanon, Syria and others,” Soskic said.

He stressed that sanctions were an issue frequently raised in connection with Serbia and noted that Serbia was a member of the United Nations, which had not imposed sanctions on Russia, while at the same time being a candidate for membership in the European Union, which had imposed restrictive measures.

“We are also a country that has had negative experiences with sanctions. We saw that they had negative effects on ordinary people. In our case, they lasted for ten years and achieved nothing, and we can also see that they have achieved nothing in the cases of Iran, North Korea and other countries,” Soskic said.

Foreign investors should not receive direct funding from the state budget

Turning to economic issues, Soskic—who said he would consider becoming prime minister if the proposal came from the students and was the result of a democratic process—argued that providing direct state incentives to foreign companies was not an optimal long-term solution, particularly when it was uncertain whether those companies were bringing technologies and production capabilities that Serbia could not develop independently.

“Money should not be given directly from the state budget to foreign investors, particularly when we are not certain that they are bringing technologies, production capabilities or services that we would otherwise be unable to develop ourselves,” Soskic said.

Kosovo is by no means a unique case

Asked about the Student List’s position on Kosovo, Soskic said it was similar to its position regarding respect for the Constitution and the law.

“The Constitution unequivocally states that Kosovo and Metohija is an integral part of Serbia. The international legal framework, UN Resolution 1244, also supports Serbia’s territorial integrity in Kosovo and Metohija,” Soskic said.

He argued that Kosovo was not a unique case internationally, particularly in Europe, pointing out that Moldova was moving toward the EU despite the disputed territory of Transnistria and referring to what he described as the even more drastic example of Ukraine.

He also recalled the Cyprus issue, noting that Cyprus had nevertheless joined the EU despite the long-standing territorial dispute in the north of the island.

“There are similar examples elsewhere. Kosovo and Metohija is by no means the unique case that some seek to portray it as. At the same time, Resolution 1244 falls within the category of binding decisions and supports Serbia’s territorial integrity. I would recall that the United States, the United Kingdom, France and other countries voted in favor of that resolution, as did Slovenia and the Netherlands, which were non-permanent members of the Security Council at the time. It is a binding act for all UN Member States, and we are a UN member, so it is binding on us as well,” Soskic emphasized.

He said that the issue should be resolved with regional cooperation and the region’s European perspective in mind. According to Soskic, resolving it required a degree of goodwill and an absence of Balkan animosity.

Soskic added that Serbia was the only country in Europe whose 1991 borders were being disputed, while Serbia itself recognized the borders of all its neighbors.