Remembrance Day for the victims of the NATO aggression marked in Vranje; Vučić addresses the gathering PHOTO

More than 10,000 people attended the commemoration of the Day of Remembrance for those who perished in the NATO aggression.

Vučić Addresses the gathering

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić also addressed those gathered in Vranje.

“Your Holiness, esteemed Mr. Dodik, honorable clergy, representatives of the Islamic community, dear citizens, soldiers, and police officers, thank you for being here tonight. This is the 13th time I have attended such events on March 24 to commemorate the Day of NATO Aggression. None of this would have happened if President Dodik and I had not, back then, agreed to observe all the beautiful, difficult, and terrible—but important—dates together,” Vučić said at the beginning of his address.

He also expressed his gratitude to all the friends from the region who came to Vranje for the anniversary of the NATO aggression.

“Whenever we think that so many years have passed and that the wounds have healed, we are always surprised to realize that they are far from healed, as if they are still bleeding, as if it all happened yesterday. Today, we see much more clearly that every war that continues in the world, every act of violence today, did not begin yesterday, but on March 24, 1999. And if anyone today asks why international law is being violated, the only correct answer is because of the permission that was granted on March 24, 1999,” he said.

He added that this is not just a gathering of remembrance.

“Of course, this is a gathering of remembrance—we had our children, soldiers, police officers, and civilians killed, and we will always hold memorial services, pay tribute, and remember them. But this is also a warning for the future, and that is our lesson. Yet anyone who does not learn from their own history will never learn anything from the history of other nations. In 1999, after they destroyed the Serbian Krajina, expelled the population, and killed those they could, Kosovo and Metohija came next, followed by the ultimate destruction of Serbia,” Vučić emphasized.

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Vučić added that, in the meantime, Serbia has been building its military.

“I want all of you to know one thing, especially those of you from these regions: we have been building our army, some laughed at us, but for us, there are no longer invisible planes, no invincible targets, no one who thinks they can attack our country with impunity. This is what you, the citizens of Serbia, have helped build. You will hear no word of hatred from me, neither tonight nor ever. They did it with the help of the greatest countries in the world, and one small nation opposed them—and always will,” he said.

“I promised mothers and grandmothers that I would preserve peace”

Vučić also added that he has promised the mothers, grandmothers, and women of the country that he would safeguard peace.

“That is why I do not speak harsher words. If you think I lack emotions, I do not. If you think I would not shed tears before you, I would—and have, more than once. If you think I would not speak much harsher words, I would, many, many, many times harsher. But as president, I have the obligation to protect our children and our future, and to continue strengthening and building our economy,” he emphasized.

He underlined that “we must never be naive and believe their lies.”

Denmark was the first to recognize the independence of the so-called Kosovo

He pointed out that Denmark, which today faces an attack on its territorial integrity, was the first to recognize Kosovo’s independence.

“Today, the German president said that the attack on Iran is a violation of international law. They never said that about Serbia, because they participated in it. And they never will. Yet, under the most difficult conditions in which we were left—our country destroyed, without jobs, without allied states, without Kosovo and Metohija, as some declared, with hunger in the streets—they never remember Serbia and its territorial integrity. We are on the European path and we know that we must be strong and resilient, wise,” he stated.

“Even today, they invent whatever they want around the world, kidnapping and seizing leaders overnight—just as it suits them. I won’t even talk about European hypocrisy, and all of this was done together with the Americans,” he added.

As Vučić emphasized, they will never apologize for their crimes.

“We must never forget this. Serbia is everything; for Serbia, it is worth living and fighting,” concluded Aleksandar Vučić.

Patriarch Porfirije: "A sad but sacred remembrance of one of the last Golgothas of our martyr nation"

"Dear people of Vranje, and all of you from other Serbian communities gathered today in this city, may God help us and bless us all. I greet you as one of you, rejoicing in the blessing to visit this part of our wonderful, beautiful homeland together with my fellow archdeacons, and to meet face to face, comforting each other with our shared faith, hope, and the love of our Lord Jesus Christ for us and our love for Him," Patriarch Porfirije said at the beginning of his address.

"I rejoice, even though the reason for our gathering is sad. This is so because, for us Christians, the path of the cross is an overture, an introduction to the joys of the Resurrection. It is a sad, yet sacred remembrance of one of the last Golgothas of our martyr nation. The terrible NATO bombing that began on this day turned our homeland into a horrific battlefield. Our entire country, with all its cities and villages, and all its inhabitants without exception, found themselves in a war flame that consumed everything in its path due to the unilateral decision of the powerful of this world," the Patriarch added.

He remembered the girls Irena Mitić and Milica Stojanović.

"One was 12 and the other 15 at the moment of their martyrdom. It is particularly, for us personally, and I believe for every Christian and person of goodwill, a sign of the devastating fall of humanity that on the bomb that killed Irena while she was helping her uncle plant corn in the field, someone named Erik R. had written: ‘Bad times, isn’t that wonderful!’ This murder, and the message filled with morbid cynicism similar to what our people received by bombs from the same part of the world during Easter celebrations in 1944, unmistakably reveals much about the root and nature of the war waged against our freedom-loving Serbian people," he said.

He appealed to the entire world, especially to those making crucial decisions affecting everyone, to stop the bloodshed and war destruction, and to devote all talents and energies to preserving peace within ourselves and spreading peace throughout the world.

More than 10,000 people in Vranje

Before the official part of the program began, Vučić shared a video showing a large crowd gathered in Vranje.

According to media reports, more than 10,000 people were present.