The head of the country’s financial department noted that due to the war in Ukraine, Serbia is under great pressure and the introduction of restrictions against the Kremlin will protect national interests.
Serbian Minister of Economy Rade Basta called for the introduction of international sanctions against the Russian Federation. This is reported by the local edition Serbia.postsen.
In his opinion, Serbia pays a high price for the fact that they do not impose international restrictions on the Russian Federation after the aggression in Ukraine, so it’s time to fix it. Rade Basta called on the government to express its opinion on this matter.
“As Minister of Economy, I cannot accept the fact that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic is under such great pressure, and we are silent. That is why I am in favor of imposing sanctions against Russia, I stand next to President Vucic in protecting state and national interests, and I have absolute confidence in him. That is why I ask the Serbian government and all ministers to make a statement on this issue,” the official said.
In addition, the Minister of Economy went on to say that for more than a year, Serbia held back from imposing sanctions, as they had hope that the war would end and both sides would resolve their differences through peaceful negotiations, but instead “we are faced with a new reality.”
“There is no end in sight to the conflict, and it seems that reasonable arguments have dried up. Small countries always suffer from the conflict of large ones, and due to global turmoil, Serbia is facing enormous pressure,” Rade Basta added.
Recall that on March 10, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic allowed the imposition of sanctions against Russia. He noted that the country has not yet joined the economic restrictions against the Russian Federation because of the “firmness of the position.” At the same time, the President stressed that Belgrade immediately decided on its attitude towards the war.
On March 3, Alexander Vučić hinted that Serbia was ready to stop supporting the Russian Federation, but there was a condition. According to the Serbian president, his country will have to make some difficult choices in the future.
