rs.n1info.com <https://rs.n1info.com/english/news/russian-ambassador-sees-no-change-in-serbias-attitude/>
Russian Ambassador sees no change in Serbia’s attitude Author:N1 Belgrade 2-3 minutes _____ Russian Ambassador Alexander Bocan-Harchenko told N1 that he sees no fundamental change in Belgrade’s attitude towards Moscow. Speaking live on the Iza Vesti (Behind the News) show, the ambassador said that the European Union is forcing Serbia to impose sanctions but itself remains one of Russia’s biggest international trade partners. Speaking about changes in Serbia’s attitude towards Russia following the invasion of Ukraine, the ambassador said that Moscow was disappointed by some things such as Belgrade’s vote in favor of a UN resolution condemning the invasion. “We are maintaining friendly relations and seeking to understand the real reason for that,” Bocan Harchenko said. “It would be stupid to say that we are indifferent. We are disappointed but we fully understand the reason why Serbia had to vote as it did. It was forced because of the unbelievable pressure from the West beyond every understandable limit,” he added. Bocan Harchenko said the Serbia never suffered that kind of pressure from Russia, adding that his statement that imposing sanctions would cause economic and social harm is not a form of pressure. According to him, Serbia-Russia relations are at the level of 8 out of a possible 10. “We never start from the fact that we are a great power when building relations, let alone with a friendly country. Our friendship is built on mutual interests and respect,” he said. The Ambassador said that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s visit to Belgrade was cancelled from the outside by those who do not want Serbia to conduct an independent foreign policy. “The visit would have strengthened Serbia’s position and Lavrov could have expressed our views on Kosovo and Republika Srpska,” he said. -- http:www.antic.org --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "SERBIAN NEWS NETWORK" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/senet/000c01d88226%24459ec1f0%24d0dc45d0%24%40gmail.com.
