Kremlin: Russia Is Aware of Serbia’s Efforts to Resist Western Pressures

Dmitry Peskov (Photo: PrintScreen YouTube)

Russia fully understands how strong Western pressure against Belgrade is, and what sort of effort Serbia has invested to resist it, a spokesman for the Kremlin, Dmitry Peskov, said on Feb. 3.

After Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic commented that he could not say how much longer Belgrade would manage to avoid introducing sanctions against Russia, but that he would hold out for as long as possible, Peskov said that Moscow “highly regards the position of the Serbian leadership,” Russia’s state RIA Novosti news agency reported.

“We are well aware of the unprecedented Western pressure that Serbia’s leadership has been exposed to. We completely understand the price that the Serbian leadership has been paying, and its efforts to resist this pressure,” Peskov said when asked to comment on Vucic statement and whether it would change relations between Belgrade and Moscow.

Peskov, a spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin, said that Russia “highly esteems” relations with Serbia and that he hoped that they would further develop. “We highly regard our relationship with Serbia. It has deep historic roots, a contentful present and, we are confident, excellent prospects. We hope that our bilateral ties will continue to develop,” Peskov said.