Vucic: No need to travel to France in the next three months
Serbia did not break diplomatic relations with France, but we will not let anyone trample over Serbia, said Prime Minister and President-elect Aleksandar Vucic.
PM Vucic said on Monday that he has asked the officials of Serbian Ministries to restrain from travelling to France in the next three months because of the Colmar Court’s decision not to extradite former Kosovo PM and one of the KLA commanders Ramush Haradinaj to Serbia.
“We are not breaking diplomatic relations with France, I am just saying that you do not have to travel for official visits to France in the next three months,” said PM Vucic.
The Court in Calmar decided on Thursday that Ramush Haradinaj cannot be extradited to Serbia. Haradinaj was arrested by the French police on 4th January in Basel on the basis of Interpol notice issued on the request of Serbia. Serbia accuses Haradinaj, who was one of the leaders of Kosovo Liberation Army (OVK), of war crimes against civilians.
The Prime Minister said that the only reaction of the Government of Serbia was a protest note to France, but it is not a "big deal", he said, given that Serbia and Croatia exchanged around twenty protest notes last year.
“How is it possible that you [France] trusted Serbian judiciary when we needed to persecute perpetrators responsible for the murder of your citizen in Serbia (Brice Taton), but now you do not have confidence in Serbian judiciary when Ramush Haradinaj should be tried?”, asked PM Vucic.
Serbian Government ordered its officials and employees, as well as the directors of public companies, to cancel their official visits to France in the next three months.
Decision on canceling the visits was just one of reactions of the Serbian government after the release of Ramush Haradinaj from France.
Jelena Jankovic