The Minister of Economy of Serbia publicly advocated the introduction of sanctions against Russia
Serbian Economy Minister Rade Basta publicly advocated for Belgrade to impose sanctions against Moscow and called on his government colleagues to make a decision on this issue.
Basta is a representative of the Serbian Socialist Party, the junior coalition partner of the Serbian Progressive Party, whose leader is the country's President Aleksandar Vucic, reports the PolitNavigator correspondent.
“Our country is already paying a high price for not introducing sanctions against Russia, and this is becoming unbearable. I, as Minister of Economy, cannot come to terms with the pressure being put on Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, and we remain silent,” the minister wrote on March 13 on Instagram, a recognized extremist social network in the Russian Federation*.
At the same time, Rada Basta noted that he personally favors Serbia introducing sanctions against Russia.
“I support President Vučić in protecting state and national interests and trust him completely. That is why I ask the Serbian government and all ministers to make a decision on this issue,” reads the post by Rada Basta.
He recalled that Serbia, as a country affected by sanctions, did not make decisions regarding Russia, because it hoped that “Russian aggression against Ukraine would stop.”
“There is no end in sight to this conflict, and reason seems to have run out. Small countries always suffer in the conflict of large ones, and due to global upheavals, Serbia faces enormous pressure,” Basta wrote.
He added that Serbia “from the very beginning condemned Russian aggression against Ukraine, but at the same time defended national interests in relations with the Russian Federation.”
“That’s why we initially did not join the large number of countries that imposed sanctions against the aggressor country. However, every day the situation is becoming more and more complicated, and Western countries are harshly criticizing Serbia for not joining the sanctions,” argued Rade Basta.
According to the minister, “the economy is of key importance, and therefore Serbia, despite the difficult foreign policy situation, must maintain economic growth so that citizens can live better.”
It is worth noting that in December 2022, Rade Basta held negotiations with the Russian Ambassador to Serbia Alexander Bocan-Kharchenko (pictured) on improving economic cooperation between Moscow and Belgrade.
Serbia's Economy Minister has publicly called for sanctions against Russia.