Russian Ambassador: Belgrade Won’t Levy Sanctions Even After Elections

Alexander Botsan-Kharchenko (BETAPHOTO/MILAN OBRADOVIC/MO)

Russia’s Ambassador to Serbia Alexander Botsan-Kharchenko has expressed his belief that Belgrade’s stance on sanctions against Russia will not change after Serbia’s upcoming snap parliamentary elections.

In a Sept. 30 interview for RT Balkan TV, the diplomat opined that every party and/or coalition takes into account the opinions of the public when formulating its program – both electoral and pre-electoral – adding that it is well-known that the majority of Serbia wants to continue developing cooperation with Russia.

“I think it will be difficult for a party to achieve good results [at the ballot box] if it states that it is against cooperating with Russia,” he said and recalled that Serbia has a long-standing policy of balanced relations with the West – i.e. the U.S. and EU – on one hand and Russia and China on the other.

Asked his opinion on why the West is trying to push Serbia into the pro-Ukrainian camp, Botsan-Kharchenko stressed that there is a significant interest in pulling Serbia into the ranks of countries that have levied sanctions against Russia and which harbor Russophobia.

“Only Serbia has kept to the sidelines and rather staunchly maintained its opposition to the sanctions. We believe that this attitude, which is grounded in Serbia’s national interests, will remain following the elections. I am not talking about the outcome of the elections. It appears that all political actors are aligned in their rejection of the sanctions and Russophobia,” the ambassador concluded.