BELGRADE, December 6. /TASS/. Crimea is Russian and this is a hard fact for the whole world to recognize, the deputy leader of the Serbian Radical Party, Vojislav Seselj, a member of his country’s delegation to the Council of Europe, told TASS on the sidelines of a conference Friday.
"Historically Russia is our greatest ally in the international scene. Russia is the main protector of Kosovo in the United Nations. In 2015, Russia protected the Serbs from being labeled in the United Nations as those guilty of genocide. Russia has always supported Serbia. We believe that if Russia protects our territorial integrity, the least we can do in response is to recognize the territorial integrity of Russia, together with Crimea and Sevastopol as its integral parts. Crimea had been unfairly taken away from Russia, but historically it has remained Russian territory all along. It was home to Russian people. We believe that this is a hard fact for the whole world to recognize."
In his opinion Serbia must get integrated with Russia to the maximum extent through the Eurasian Economic Union and the Collective Security Treaty Organization.
"Regrettably, Serbia’s authorities are committed to euro-integration, and we believe that this is very bad. A situation where officials prefer to keep quiet about the Crimean issue should be changed as soon as possible," Seselj said.
The conference in Serbia helps advance the dialogue on Crimea and the establishment of cooperation for many countries of the world, he added.
About the conference
The Russia House center of Russian science and culture in Belgrade is hosting a conference entitled The Belgrade Dialogue: for Constructive Relations with Russia and the Recognition of the Crimean People’s Will. A dozen European countries, including Russia, are taking part in the forum.
After the government coup in Ukraine in February 2014 the authorities of Crimea and Sevastopol held a referendum on the issue of reunification with Russia. More than 80% percent of the voters went to the polls and 96.7% and 95.6% respectively voted in favor. On March 18, 2014 Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a treaty on the accession of the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol to Russia. Russia’s Federal Assembly ratified it on March 21.