Vucic: For the security of Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, I will ask for talks at all levels in the US

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said today that, if necessary, he would ask for talks at all levels in the United States in order to influence, as much as possible, greater security and safety for the Serbian people in northern Kosovo.

Responding to a question about whether he believed the White House would stop Albin Kurti's actions and protect Serbian national interests if Pristina attempted to take over the bridge over the Ibar on September 1, Vucic stressed that this was not only a matter of Serbian national interests, but also a matter of people's security.

"Above all, this is a matter of people's lives and their survival in northern Kosovo and Metohija. I have not hidden this, and I am grateful both to Alexander (Titolo) and to many US officials with whom I have discussed this issue, who wanted to hear our views and listened to what we had to say on the matter," Vucic said after visiting the Innovation and Education Park of the Republic of Serbia's Demining Center in Velika Mostanica.

He added that anyone who believes Serbia needs a future with worse relations with the United States does not deserve to lead the country.

He stressed that he must fight for the position of the Serbian people and added that he was certain Titolo had already conveyed his words and advocacy to Washington, but that he would be ready, if things did not move in the right direction, to request talks at all levels in the United States in order to influence, as much as possible, greater security and safety for the Serbian people in northern Kosovo.

Vucic said he did not know whether the European Union would participate in this, but that he hoped it would.

If the European Union does not participate, he said, it was his obligation to turn to those who have the greatest influence over Pristina, namely the United States, in order to fight for the Serbian people.