Russian Ambassador Aleksandr Chepurin has announced the possibility of his country getting “even more deeply involved” in resolving the Kosovo problem, Serbian media quoted Belgrade based daily Politika.
In an op-ed for the Belgrade newspaper Politika published on Tuesday – and penned on the occasion of Russia’s Statehood Day – Chepurin said that Belgrade is, when it comes to Kosovo, about to face “ultimatum pressure from traditional Serb-haters” – and that Russia has been and will be on the side of Serbia.
“Our position remains unchanged – we will support that decision which Serbia and the Serb people will consider acceptable to themselves. We are proceeding from the Resolution (1244) of the (UN) Security Council forming the legal basis for an agreement,” the Russian ambassador to Serbia stated.
He pointed out that parallels are being made unjustifiably between Kosovo and Crimea, because these are “two completely different stories” – since Crimea separated (from Ukraine) “in accordance with the UN Declaration of 1970.”
“The Crime issue is definitely closed, Crimea is Russia, and Kosovo is Serbia. It’s not just a slogan, it’s the legal reality that must be respected,” Chepurin said.
Speaking about the good relations between Russia and Serbia, he said they date back to the emergence of the Russian state in the 10th century, and added that they are now based on relations of trust between the leaderships of the states, on economic ties, and the centuries-old cultural and spiritual unity.
