Russian official on Serbia and NATO

Head of the Russian Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Konstantin Kosachev said that Serbia has to decide on its own whether it wants to join NATO.

He added however that he doubts that the Serb people, after the tragedy they endured during the Alliance bombing of 1999, would want to join NATO.

“I am deeply convinced that the Serbian defense minister, who said that it is good for Serbia to become a member of the North Atlantic Alliance, was only stating his personal opinion,” Kosachev said.

“I believe that such decision should not be made by individuals, even if they are ministers, but that the people should be asked, and ideally, a referendum should be held,” the Russian official concluded.