Dacic: I Didn't Say Vucic or I Were Deceived, Just Highlighting Failure to Implement the Brussels Agreement

Ivica Dacic (Photo: PrintScreen instagram/mupsrbije)

Serbia's Deputy Prime Minister Ivica Dacic said on July 28 that in the statement released earlier that "the international community deceived Serbia when the Brussels Agreement was signed in 2013," him being one of the signatories, he referred to the implementation of the agreement, as  Pristina had failed to fulfill its obligations "with the silent support of the EU and the U.S."

"I never said, nor would I ever say, that we - Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, or I - were deceived into signing the Brussels Agreement. Such wording would imply that we didn’t know what we were signing, that we didn’t understand the importance of the document, or were incapable of assessing the political reality," Dacic said in a statement.

According to him, not only is that untrue, but it is "deeply offensive to any statesman who at the time was responsible for making decisions on behalf of Serbia."

Dacic explained that Serbia was deceived because the Brussels Agreement was presented as a serious international arrangement with equal obligations for both sides and oversight mechanisms, but it had never been implemented in practice.

"We were deceived not because we didn’t understand the text of the document, but because we couldn’t have imagined the level of passivity, selectivity, and political opportunism that would define its implementation," he said.

Dacic added that Serbia fulfilled its obligations under the agreement, but that the EU – the guarantor and mediator - did not show the same determination and commitment when it was Pristina’s turn to implement the agreement and fulfill its obligations.