Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova’s comment on anti-Serbian moves by the Kosovo authorities

The position of Serbs in Kosovo is worsening literally every day. Violations of fundamental UN Security Council Resolution 1244 have become gloomy routine. The level of ethnic tensions is rapidly growing.

After the decision to ban the circulation of the Serbian dinar, which deprived the local non-Albanians of the opportunity to receive their pensions, allowances and other payments, the local authorities have taken a new step in eliminating administrative and commercial structures beyond their control, including Serbian postal branches. They are conducting illegal searches, withdrawing documents and cash, detaining employees and fabricating criminal cases.

The criminal regime of Prime Minister Albin Kurti has finally gone into the active phase of anti-Serbian ethnic cleansing: the expelling of Serbians from their ancestral lands. In this way Pristina hopes to avoid the need to fulfil its commitments, primarily, on creating the Community of Serb Municipalities of Kosovo.

By encouraging Albin Kurti and the terror he unleashed, the West is trying to punish Belgrade for its firmness in upholding its national sovereignty, the right to pursue an independent policy and the resolve to preserve friendly relations with Russia and other states outside the Euro-Atlantic orbit. Attempts are being made to compel the Serbians to give up their vital interests, including protection of their compatriots.

 We are seeing this not only in Kosovo but also in Bosnia and Herzegovina where the West is trying to reshape the country in line with a unitary model and put it under its control. The opinions of the Serbian residents in that country are simply ignored as well as the basic principles of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was approved by UN Security Council Resolution 1031. It guarantees equality to three state-forming peoples and two entities – Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The unity of the Serbian political class and its ability to assume responsibility for the country’s future are especially important in the face of these challenges. In this context, a special role belongs to the patriotic forces that have already won their reputation and those that are just starting to gain authority in society. Much depends on their ability to unite and jointly defend the fundamental interests of the Serbian people and to ensure the stability of government at all levels so as to draft and implement viable solutions to key national issues.