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Serbian president says his country should remain neutral, stay away from military unions

Nikolic said that he and the Russian president had discussed Serbia’s conclusion of an agreement with NATO

Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev, Pool

Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic

© AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev, Pool

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MOSCOW, March 10 /TASS/. Serbia should remain neutral and should stay away from any military union, Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic told journalists after a working meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"We fully agree that Serbia should remain neutral in military terms. I believe that in this case it is necessary to pursue a balanced policy without entering or accessing any military unions," Nikolic said.

Nikolic added that he and the Russian president had discussed Serbia’s conclusion of an agreement with NATO, which provides for free movement and diplomatic immunity of NATO representatives in the Serbian territory.

"Yes, we talked about that. The situation in Serbia and Russia is not alarming or agitated. President Putin said that he understood what we had signed," the Serbian leader said.

Nikolic explained that the ratified agreement with NATO concerned the presence of NATO technical staff in the Serbian territory to a larger degree. NATO experts will destroy ammunitions at Serbian depots.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has pledged to Belgrade Moscow’s support in all issues where Serbia protects its territorial integrity, Nikolic also said Thursday.

"President Putin stated clearly that Serbia may hope for development of economic relations and political relations, said we may count on Russia everywhere where Serbia protects its territorial integrity and independence, particularly in Kosovo and Metohija," Nikolic said.

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