Co-President of the European Green Party and Member of the European Parliament, Thomas Weitz, told Nova that he does not personally support Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, but that the EU is a heterogeneous organisation and that there are different views across the board about the Serbian president.
“I personally do not support President Aleksandar Vučić, but that does not mean that I do not support the notion that parties have different views and values, which include the views of President Vučić. This is part of democracy. Personally, I, as well as other representatives of the European Greens, support the movements and organisations that are gathered around Ne Davimo Beograd and will run in the next elections. We give the same support to Nebojša Zelenović too. I believe that they have the potential for change, and I am convinced of that after talking to them,” said the co-chairman of the European Green Party.
Weitz pointed out that the Greens and Ne Davimo Beograd share identical views on the issue of environmental protection and social justice. “I think they already have an impact because they can move environmental and social equality issues that are extremely important for citizens,” he added.
When asked why the EU continues to support and cooperate with Vučić, his position was clear.
“Serbia is an independent state. I am glad that I am able to support civil society in this country in every way I can, but it is not the responsibility of the European Union to decide who will form a coalition or who will win the elections in Serbia. The citizens of Serbia must fight and decide for themselves what they want. Yes, we support Serbia and the countries in the region, although Serbia now has less ambition when it comes to joining the EU, unfortunately. Regardless, I will continue to support Serbia on its way to EU membership. We also give financial support to Serbia and why stop doing so? I think it is the EU’s duty to help Serbian citizens, even if some of the money ends up in the private pockets of the country’s top officials,” Weitz added.
The Vice-President of the European Green Party referred to the upcoming elections in Serbia and underlined that he deeply believes that all political parties and movements should go to the polls.
“I deeply believe that they should take part in the election, although it is clear that there are difficulties with the electoral conditions. I have heard that people are being blackmailed to vote for a particular party, but it is difficult to control how each citizen will vote. So, despite all the difficulties, there is still the possibility for them to vote for what they think is best for their country. Again, I encourage citizens not to allow or accept pressure and, ultimately, to do their best to return the country to a functional democracy,” he added.
In addition to these topics, Weitz spoke about pollution and the Rio Tinto project, and underlined that the big problem with the project is that it is being implemented in a non-transparent way and that he will certainly inform the European Parliament about the dangers related to the lithium project.
(Nova, 25.08.2021)
https://nova.rs/vesti/politika/evroposlanik-u-beogradu-novac-eu-zavrsi-u-dzepovima-srpskih-mocnika/
This post is also available in: Italiano