Ukraine expresses concern over the visits of Serbian representatives to Crimea
On November 7, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Pavlo Klimkin, held consultations with the Ukrainian Ambassador to Serbia Aleksandr Aleksandrovich, during which he expressed concern over Serbia’s contact with the annexed Crimea, as reported by the press service of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry.
“Illegal contacts between representatives of Serbia and the occupied Crimea are causing considerable concern. It is hoped that Serbia will fully adhere to its declared principle of respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine concerning internationally recognized borders,” the report stated.
It was also clarified that, apart from discussing the issues of Ukrainian-Serbian relations, the key subject during the consultations was “the issue of Serbian mercenaries fighting in the Donbas as part of Russian forces and the necessity of Serbia’s compliance with international legal obligations in the area of combating terrorism.”
On November 3, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin announced that he summoned the Ukrainian ambassador to Serbia, Aleksandr Aleksandrovich, for consultations after Aleksandrovich made statements which sparked criticism in Belgrade.
Alexander Alexandrovich, in an interview that was published on November 1 on news website BIRN, said among other things that Russian President Vladimir Putin “does not care about Serbia, he just uses it as yet another tool to destroy Europe.”
Also, the ambassador criticized Serbian politicians who “come to Crimea and praise Putin.” He believes that this worsens Serbia’s image in Ukraine.