Serbia has confirmed its support for Ukraine's territorial integrity and its European aspirations, but is not yet ready to join the European Union's sanctions against Russia. This was stated by Serbian Minister for European Affairs Nemanja Starović in an interview with the Austrian agency APA, reported by DER STANDARD, transmitted by UNN.
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Starović assured that Serbia is not changing its position on Ukraine and is trying to be an honest partner.
If we are criticized for not doing enough for Ukraine, then my answer is simple: let's allow Ukrainians to speak for themselves
The minister explained that Serbia is not imposing restrictions against Russia for several reasons. According to Starović, this "will not affect Russia at all, but will strongly affect the Serbian economy." Also, the country is not an EU member, and therefore has no security guarantees that the union provides to its states. In this context, he cited the example of the pandemic, when Serbia received almost no aid from the EU recovery fund, unlike neighboring Croatia.
Croatia received 22 billion euros from the EU recovery fund, while Serbia received almost nothing, namely 165 million euros
At the same time, he stated that Serbia is ready to fully support EU sanctions if its accession to the Union becomes a reality.
The minister emphasized that "from day one, clearly and unequivocally" Belgrade condemned Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. He also expressed support for Ukraine's European integration.
Now we, the countries of the Western Balkans, must become part of this impulse