Djuric: Serbia supports OSCE as instrument of peace, expects OSCE support for Serb rights

VIENNA - Serbia supports peace in Europe and the OSCE as an instrument of peace, Serbian FM Marko Djuric said on Thursday, adding that Belgrade expected the OSCE missions in Serbia and Kosovo-Metohija to support the human rights of all people, especially Kosovo-Metohija Serbs as the population that was the most endangered.

Speaking to reporters after the 32nd OSCE Ministerial Council in Vienna, Djuric said the OSCE was very important for Serbia and that the organisation had been established to maintain a stable and secure atmosphere of cooperation in Europe.

"It has set certain rules and created the instruments of its institution that need to secure the European security architecture. Unfortunately, we are witnessing that security in Europe has been seriously cast into doubt in recent years," Djuric said.

Due to everything that is going on in the world and because of Kosovo-Metohija, Serbia strongly supports the work of OSCE and believes the OSCE must be preserved as a mechanism of cooperation in Europe, Djuric added.

It is necessary to safeguard the Helsinki Act and other acts guaranteeing the territorial integrity of all countries, as well as to support their equal cooperation, Djuric noted, adding that, for Serbia, that was not just a phrase.

"It is better to preserve the OSCE as an organisation and multilateralism and territorial integrity as principles, than to have some new generations have to build new organisations from ruins after conflicts and wars. Our message here today is that we support peace in Europe, that we support the OSCE as an instrument of peace, that we support all peace initiatives. I have supported US President Donald Trump's initiative for attaining peace in Ukraine," Djuric said.

He said that, in a speech, he had presented facts about the position of Serbs in Kosovo-Metohija, noting that the Serbs were being denied the right to vote, as well as all other rights.

"From the OSCE missions in both Serbia and Kosovo-Metohija - since we have two OSCE missions in our territory - we expect support for the human rights of all people, especially the Serbs, as they are the most endangered," Djuric noted.