Vucic: Our forces have not crossed the line, if they cross they will not return

The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, said today that Serbia would try to preserve peace, but also warned all those who did not care about peace and who wanted the Serbs to be evicted from the north of Kosovo that this would not happen.

"I am sure that things have been brought almost to an end. I talked to the desperate representatives of the Serbs, they would like to preserve the peace, but they don't know how. I am sure that the Serbs will make or lead active moves from now on," Vucic said.

He added that Vidovdan was an important day in Serbian history, and on that day, the Serbs would peacefully take their steps on the road to freedom, in accordance with international legal norms.

"As far as we are concerned, we will not inform anyone, except for the lowering and raising of combat readiness, except for the obligations we have towards NATO," the President of Serbia stressed.

He also said that there would be many long-term, strategic decisions before all of us.

"We will try to keep the peace, but we will not allow further mistreatment and endangering of the Serbs - just because they are Serbs. We did everything; they literally trampled us and made us look like idiots. Just look at the EULEX report on monitoring," Vucic pointed out.

He pointed out that he had wanted to address the citizens today, in a special way, primarily regarding the situation in Kosovo.

"Yesterday, a brother and a sister, Dara, and Kristijan, were attacked by the Kosovo Police in the village of Zitkovac, in the municipality of Zvecan. They kicked Kristijan on the body, kept him in a kneeling position on the ground, and Dara was also kept on the ground," Vucic said.

He added that this morning he had spoken with their mother, Marija, who had found her children - the son being held on his knees on the ground, and the daughter barefoot, who had collapsed several times due to stress.

"Those so-called or fake police officers said that they had been stopping everyone with helmets and caps. Imagine the children had helmets; they were driving quads, so they thought they were dangerous terrorists... Like in the movies, they wanted to deal with the children... It's a shock for the whole family," Vucic said.

As he said, it was just one incident.

He said that for many years Serbia had been trying to preserve peace, stability, and economic progress in every possible way.

"Our country gave everything to make it so - to keep the peace, for the country to progress the fastest in its history. Those are the facts. However, no matter how much we have tried to be a serious and responsible partner to the Western powers, we are on the European path, they have never looked at us in that way, if we do not serve and act according to their request. They say, we would always be guilty, even if we have no guilt," the President of Serbia said.

He listed all the attacks on the Serbs, since the beginning of the year, since the brothers had been shot on Christmas Day.

"You would assume, when someone wants to shoot on Christmas Day, and at children, that they won't get out of custody soon. And, he is in something that is not de facto house arrest", Vucic stressed.

No one has ever been held accountable for any attack on the Serbs:

"The so-called Kosovo Police shot at Jovanovic on the Bistrica Bridge while he was carrying pots and pans. Kosovo Police said at first that it had not happened. No one in the world reacted. They let it go. And when the evidence was clearly shown, then they said - sorry, we shot a little," the president said.

He recalled that on May 29, Kurti's police had shot Dragisa Galjak with two bullets in the back.

"Can you believe that there isn't even an investigation into that matter... There is no territory in the world, the police, that does not prosecute such a crime ex officio. Can you believe that Rados Petrovic and Dusan Obrenovic were arrested for the crime of terrorism, and hooliganism, without having done anything? In the conversation with the NATO representatives, they tell us that they know that they have done nothing, but they handed them over to the police because they have to, according to their requests," Vucic said and added that 21 days had already passed, and that they were still in custody.

He noted that both of them, especially one of them, were severely beaten and that they said that they "received them from NATO like that, although NATO did not touch them".

"NATO dragged them in and handed them over to the Kosovo Police. Why they are in custody, what they have done - nothing. Then you get the most hypocritical announcement. I had five talks yesterday and three this morning with Western representatives. Exchange of messages - correct or incorrect, whatever you want," he stated.

As he points out - when he asks the representatives of the Quint why they keep those people locked up, they say - "we are watching very carefully".

He also conveyed that in the EULEX report - it does not say anything.

"In that document, they wrote to us what is written in the four articles of the so-called Pristina laws, and nothing more. They respected the bureaucratic form and they really don't care about the Serbsč they can do what they want and how they want. They arrested Spasic and Vlaskovic for attacking a journalist," Vucic said.

He emphasized that Kurti created this situation:

"I thought he was doing it alone, but now I know he is working with the support of certain Western countries."

He added that the arrested Spasic worked as a DJ, and he also worked part-time at the hospital, and he was detained only because he dared to tell "Kurti’s journalist" to put away the camera.

"That's why he was arrested, and EULEX will follow,” Vucic noted ironically and added:

"Shame on you. Don't follow anything, liars. The only thing you follow is how the Serbs are expelled. Vlaskovic was arrested for throwing rocks, which he did not even do. And, you shot people and nobody is in prison".

But that's why, he points out, when it comes to Albanians who cross the administrative line - nothing is closely monitored, but everything is unconditional.

"They threaten our country directly and indirectly. And then that they will make a 'little Racak' out of it. So they started with the story of how they were being treated badly. They have excellent treatment, they drink Coca-Cola, and they eat cake... They don't have a single bruise, no one touched them," Vucic said.

He added that the only correct ones had been KFOR and NATO soldiers.

"The EULEX gang and everyone who works together with them, not to mention them. We sent a message and wrote that the police officers of the Ministry of Interior of Serbia, who arrested the three Kosovo policemen, were ready to be subjected to polygraph interrogation regarding the circumstances, and the place of arrest because it was not the territory of the Autonomous Province of Kosovo. We offer them to come to Belgrade, to bring their machine, your experts, we provide the policemen who are arrested. If they pass. if they have tested, then ask where. And inform the world public whether we are lying or not. But that doesn't interest them," said Vucic.

He emphasized that the Serbian Army had never crossed the administrative line.

"We have never crossed, our bodies have never crossed the administrative line. If they cross it, you will be informed as I told the commander of KFOR. And if they cross it in the future, they will not return."

This is how it is said, no Albanian was injured anywhere, but only the Serbs were shot, and then there is always talk of de-escalation and "two sides".

Vucic especially thanked Hungary and Italy, which, he said, showed a more fair relationship than before and advocated a more balanced attitude.

He added that Belgrade had not asked for anything, because it was pointless, because "we are not at war, so let's exchange prisoners". The competent authorities decided on guilt, he recalled.

He repeated that Belgrade was always asking for the withdrawal of "fake" mayors from municipalities, as well as Police Forces from the north.

"Don't harass or shoot people. Let all the innocent Serbs go. You arrested Milenkovic, Bozovic. What do they say in the indictments, they are suspected of a serious crime, and they were in front of the OIK and threw a firecracker. This is what the Western model of lies about Serbia looks like," he pointed out.

He added that the essential decision of the Western countries, which we all had to be aware of, was that they allowed the shooting and mistreatment of the Serbs.

"Everything is allowed to Kurti. They are guided by the policy of fait accompli," Vucic emphasized.

Vucic emphasized that dialogue was completely meaningless in this situation.

"When you teach someone to talk, only then. And, not that they are confronting us with the new situation on the field... Until then, let them talk. It's completely pointless to talk to a man who doesn't feel like talking. It doesn't occur to me to talk until the Serbs are released," Vucic said.

He indicated that there would be many problems the following week.

He told the citizens to trust the state leadership.

"The situation is very complicated, the most complicated in recent history. Our nation is under heavy attack by murderers, liars, and frauds. I know well enough how small we are compared to NATO countries, that our policy must be development and economic progress. But I am well aware of how much the survival of our people is threatened," Vucic said.

Asked about the invitation of the High EU Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, to a dialogue next week, Vucic said that the conversation was pointless because every crisis dialogue had no meaning.

"In every crisis dialogue, Vucic is expected to give in. I have nowhere else to give in. Whether I will technically decide whether to appear or not, so that we are not blamed for anything, that will be our decision," he explained.

He underlined that dialogue with Kurti was non-existent because he was a man who wanted war at any cost.

"He is only thinking about what kind of new provocation he will carry out, and he has the protection of the West. It is shameful to tell me that you invite both sides; which both sides? Has any Albanian been beaten, harassed, or shot?" he stressed.

When asked whether Serbia would end its cooperation with EULEX, he said that there was no problem with Serbia cooperating and that it would deliver everything it asked for.

"Come to Belgrade and interrogate our policemen. But they are lost in space and time and they have only one task, which is to protect Kosovo's statehood. They don't really care about the Serbs," Vucic underlined.

He emphasized that he was the president of all the people of Kosovo, just like all other citizens, and that as such he would no longer allow the Serbs to be made fools of, to harass and kill them.

"I have no right to do that. Make a good deal with your “child” (Kosovo), and let me know when you finish your work," he added.

When asked to comment on the President of Montenegro and the Prime Minister's offer for Montenegro to be a mediator in the dialogue with Kosovo, Vucic said that it was interesting that someone's recklessness and insolence had no limits.

"Imagine that someone steals a part of the territory from Montenegro, and then we say we are your partners, we will host you, we have a nice villa in Belgrade, on Zlatibor,... Thank you for everything. We don't need a chair if we can talk, I can stand, if there is a goodwill to talk," he emphasized.

Vucic indicated that there would be many problems the following week, so there would be opportunities to talk to the media daily.

In the end, he expressed his support for the families of Serbian martyrs, who were being mistreated by the Albanians.

"When you arrest like that, think about what will happen when we start arresting on the administrative line. Those people are no more or less guilty than those you arrest. Just think, but we don't do that because we act like a serious country, and that's how we will behave. Serbia is a country, and you are not and you never will be," Vucic concluded.