Bogdanovic: The election results are also a cry of the Serbian people in North Macedonia because of the injustice towards Serbs in Kosovo

Former mayor of the Centar municipality in Skopje, Sasa Bogdanovic, believes that after the presidential and parliamentary elections, in which VMRO-DPMNE won, North Macedonia and Serbia will continue to deepen their excellent relations, which he describes as primarily fraternal. Bogdanovic points out that the convincing victory of VMRO-DPMNE also represents a "cry of the Serbian people" in Macedonia due to the injustice being done to Serbs in Kosovo.

Regarding the open issue between Serbia and North Macedonia since Macedonia recognized the independence of Kosovo, Bogdanovic says that politicians in Macedonia should have understanding for Serbia as it is forcibly taken territory from Serbia.

He adds that United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 should also be respected.

"This is simultaneously a cry of the Serbian people living in Macedonia because of the injustice being perpetrated against the Serbian people living in Kosovo and Metohija. All those involved in politics should consider what kind of relations they will have with Serbia because the Serbian people are indivisible, whether they live in Serbia, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and we are all emotionally tied to these events," Bogdanovic told Kosovo Online.

He believes that Serbia and Macedonia will continue to deepen what he describes as phenomenal, primarily fraternal relations.

In this regard, he points out that this was evident last night when the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, was the first to congratulate Gordana Siljanovska Davkova on her victory.

"By doing so, he demonstrated readiness to deepen cooperation without jeopardizing anyone. On the other hand, I think this connection will become even stronger precisely because of those who want to create problems between the two peoples," said Bogdanovic.

He adds that these attempts to create problems between Serbs and Macedonians have had the opposite effect and indicates that this can be seen based on the election results in constituencies where many people of Serbian nationality live.

"Anyone involved in politics in North Macedonia must understand that they need to respect the Serbs living in North Macedonia because they are the link between the two countries," he emphasizes.

Commenting on Albin Kurti's support for an Albanian faction during the election campaign in North Macedonia, Bogdanovic notes that it is not fully established how significant his support was or whether it existed at all.

In that context, he mentions that Kurti called for a boycott of the presidential elections. However, he says, in areas predominantly inhabited by Albanians, based on turnout, it can be seen that Albanians participated to a certain extent, about 20 percent, which indicates that they did not heed his call.

"It was evident that the DUI boycotted yesterday's vote for president, they organized it publicly, but it is clear that they did not manage to organize a boycott everywhere. Albanians did not want to lead to such a crisis that the quorum would not be met. People here are aware, regardless of their nationality, whether they are Albanians or not, and do not want to fall into undesirable scenarios because we all live and function together here. I think that Albin Kurti does not have any particular influence among Albanians in North Macedonia," Bogdanovic stated.