Vučić: They want to drag us into war; "Serbia won't recognize Kosovo's independence"

Vučić: They want to drag us into war; "Serbia won't recognize Kosovo's independence"

Vučić addressed the citizens of Serbia and at the very beginning explained what was discussed at the Security Council session. One of the topics of the Council session, the most important, was the refusal of Albin Kurti and the Pristina authorities to hold elections in Kosovo and Metohija.

"First, at the session of the Council, we considered everything in the best faith and desire to mitigate all the consequences of the greatest crisis that has gripped the world since World War II. We agreed to buy additional quantities of oil, then milk powder. In the second part of the session and in talks with Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija, we talked about the decision of the Albanians not to allow the elections to be held on April 3rd", Vucic said.

Vucic said that part of the meeting focused on the decision by the Kosovo Albanians not to allow polling stations for the April 3 elections. “This is not only about whether the Serbs will be able to vote, nor about which politician would get the most support, but a question of security, the political survival of the Serbs in Kosovo and their very existence,” he said.

"Bislimi and some others said that the Albanians do not want to stop the elections in Kosovo and Metohija. Let me just remind you what we did and what we agreed to. We are literally being asked to recognize Kosovo. The essence is who is asking the Kosovo authorities under the auspices of the OSCE. We have accepted countless compromises," said President Vucic.

As he stated, he asked the Serbs to be patient and to "count to ten". He added that Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija surprised him today with somewhat more radical demands.

"I will stay with them even if they overvote me. Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija almost unanimously demanded not only to resign from all institutions, but also for 435 police officers to leave. I understand them because of the terror they are going through. I asked them what we would do the next day. Fine, we will take on the financial burden, but I am afraid that we could enter a vicious circle of war," he warned.

Vučić stated that some are ready for a conflict, and some are ready to leave. "I asked them to stay to guard our centuries-old hearths. Once they get into it, there is no going back. I asked them for patience, they were fair and said they only trusted me."

“This was the first time that we did not harmonize our activities with the Kosovo Serbs. I asked the Kosovo Serbs for patience, called them to think it over and trust my experience,” he said.

He also pointed out that he hoped that Quint would condemn Pristina's behavior, as well as that some in the region were playing a game in order to drag us into a trap as if we were against Western civilization.

"We must avoid that kind of trap. The whole of Pristina and parts of Podgorica, Zagreb and Sarajevo are not conducting a coordinated action by accident," Vucic said.

Dalibor Jevtic: "We will have peaceful protests on Friday"

After the president, Dalibor Jevtic, a representative of Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija, also addressed the public.

"Our situation has never been more difficult. This is institutional violence. If I tell you that we have come to a situation where we do not see a way out, you will understand how far we have come. The decision not to allow elections in Kosovo and Metohija is the latest human rights violation, with an aim to provoke our reaction", Jevtic said. As he stated, now they want to deny them another basic human right, and that is the right to vote.

"Someone wants to put us in an even more difficult position, but also to provoke a reaction, and to put Belgrade in a more difficult position. It is true, we did not agree for the first time on what we think and what the president thinks, but what we agreed on is that we trust only our president and our country, we will fight democratically. Kosovo Serbs would organize peaceful protests on Friday with a clear message that we do not want to have our basic rights denied or become second class citizens. We have had a long and difficult day and that reflects what we as a people are currently going through in Kosovo and Metohija," Jevtic said.

He said that what happened in Strpce is just one of the problems they are currently facing.

"We will continue the talks because we want to make a wise decision. Today, the President clearly showed that he is in favor of peace, even though there were various proposals," Jevtic concluded. Just to reiterate, President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, held important meetings today. The president attended a session of the National Security Council, after which he met with Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija. Vučić also met with the ambassadors of the Quint countries. The meeting with Quint's diplomatic representatives lasted more than two hours.