Russian Ambassador to Serbia, Aleksandr Botsan-Kharchenko, stated that Russia’s goal is to end the special military operation in Ukraine as soon as possible, with minimal military and civilian casualties, adding that the Russian position on the issue of non-recognition of Kosovo’s independence is principled, reports RTV.
“It is completely clear that there is no will to end the conflict on the side of Kyiv and the West,” said Botsan-Kharchenko in an interview for Tanjug on the occasion of the anniversary of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, and assessed that Serbia is under unprecedented pressure due to its firm position not to impose sanctions on Russia.
The Ambassador also says that the situation has become even more difficult for Serbia, which in February 2022, took the position of not agreeing to sanctions.
“The West is asking for Serbia to impose the sanctions or, as they say, to align with the EU’s foreign policy. They keep repeating that (Serbia’s) accession to the EU depends on it. That is a very difficult position,” Botsan-Kharchenko added.
He added the West wanted to talk with Belgrade only about two things – sanctions against Russia and the Kosovo issue and all they were doing was asking for concessions from Serbia.
When asked how he viewed the relations between Serbia and Russia, the Ambassador said that he hoped that Serbia would remain committed to its stance on sanctions, which Russia appreciated very much.
“That West is now putting together a new set of sanctions against Russia, which would bring a total number of sanctions to 14,000, which is a precedent in history”- Botsan-Kharchenko said.
(Blic, 24.02.2023)
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