Vucic: Peace and stability top priority of Kosovo-Metohija policy

BELGRADE - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday the number one priority of Serbia's policy on Kosovo-Metohija would be to preserve peace and stability at all costs and in every possible way.

"We need to show restraint and not respond to provocations except in case the people's lives and property are in danger, like they were in 2004," Vucic said at a special parliament session on Kosovo-Metohija.

Peace and stability are not a mere slogan but something that brings life to Serbia, enabling it to ensure a biological survival of our people, he noted.

He said the second point of the policy would be "persistent perseverance regarding the establishment of a Community of Serb Municipalities."

"It must be a legal and a physical framework for our people's rights and their political organisation in Kosovo-Metohija for any support from the Republic of Serbia, which no one will be able to thwart ever again," he said.

He said security for Kosovo-Metohija Serbs was the third point.

"Security for Serbs means no one should worry about whether their children will be attacked for having Serbian given and family names when they go to school. It also means that we can deal with other issues and better life for our people in Kosovo-Metohija, which is the fourth point."

The fourth point also means direct financial support to Kosovo-Metohija Serbs, Vucic explained.

"For that, we will need to also keep insisting on things that we do not like but will bring good to us, too. That is why we have not broken off discussions," he added.

The fifth point is that discussions and talks - even about the worst papers - are necessary because we have no right to repeat past mistakes, he said.

The sixth point is preservation of vital national interests - we will continue to protect our military neutrality and independent decision-making, he said, adding that staying on the EU path was the seventh point and a vital interest.

He said surveys indicating that 43 pct of Serbian citizens supported EU accession were a "lie" and that the actual percentage was much lower, but that that would never make him say a pro-EU policy was bad for Serbia.

He said the eighth point was growth and the health care system, the energy sector and food supplies, and noted that food shortages were the driver of inflation and needed to be addressed.

"The army must be stronger because it is what has protected our people in Kosovo-Metohija. We need development of the health care system to invest in innovative drugs and hospitals," he also said.

The ninth point is investments, Vucic said, adding that Serbia had attracted a record-high number of investments.

He said a Serbia 2025 development programme was the tenth point, adding that, despite crises and the Ukraine war, the Serbian average wage would exceed 1,000 euros by the end of 2025, lifting the country out of poverty.

"We are in a difficult moment - on one hand, we must help the Kosovo-Metohija Serbs and, on the other hand, we must avoid condemnation and punishment and look after our national interests," Vucic said.