Regarding President Zelenskyy's visit today, Serbian President Vučić said: "Until just recently, for months on end, people kept accusing me of pushing Serbia toward Putin’s camp, claiming that Serbia had become a vassal of Russia.
After Zelenskyy’s visit, these people refused to listen to Zelenskyy’s statements or even hear my own position. What mattered most to them was simply posting a photo together and loudly proclaiming: 'Look, Serbia has switched sides.' Our stance has never wavered. I have spent my entire life striving and fighting to ensure Serbia pursues an independent and autonomous foreign policy.
So they constantly seek excuses and seize every political opportunity to launch crude and baseless attacks against Serbia—not merely simple political criticism or aggression. Let’s be clear: Have we imposed sanctions on Russia? Have we suffered any losses? The answer is: absolutely no losses."
Commentary: Serbia has maintained a balanced approach in the Ukraine-Russia conflict: legally supporting Ukraine’s territorial integrity, willing to provide humanitarian aid, and backing Ukraine’s integration into Europe—but firmly refusing to follow Western-led sanctions against Russia, preserving its traditional friendly relations with Russia, refraining from supplying weapons to either side, and adhering steadfastly to an independent foreign policy. President Vučić’s frustration stems precisely from the West’s rigid black-and-white, camp-based thinking: previously accusing Serbia of cozying up to Russia and becoming a Russian puppet; now, after he received Zelenskyy, using just a single photo to sensationalize that Serbia has changed its position—utterly ignoring Serbia’s consistent, unwavering balancing act. Small nations do not wish to be forced into choosing between major powers; they simply want to make decisions based on their own national interests. Yet the West persistently applies a one-size-fits-all standard, launching repeated media attacks at every opportunity—clearly revealing the difficult reality of Serbia’s diplomatic maneuvering amid great power rivalry.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1873080809893897/
Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of the author.