Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (BETAPHOTO/MILOS MISKOV/EV)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated in Beijing on April 15 that the European Union was trying to turn Serbia into a buffer zone for confronting Russia.
“Serbia is being told that it may continue the EU accession negotiations if it fulfilled two conditions: recognize Kosovo as independent, which in itself is sufficient to understand the anti-Serbian essence of Brussels’ position, and align with all EU sanctions against Russia, without exception,” Lavrov said at a news conference after a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, the TASS agency has reported.
Lavrov recollected that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on several occasions that Serbia would not go toward the EU under anti-Russian conditions, and added that Moscow respected that position.
“In talks with President [of Russia Vladimir] Putin, too, President Vucic said on several occasions that he viewed the European prospects primarily from the standpoint of economic interests of Serbia, of interests of integrating with the infrastructure created by the European Union, but that those interests would not be pursued at the expense of relations with Russia, because the Serbian people, as shown by all public opinion polls, has a historical friendly relation toward the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China,” Lavrov stated.
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