Vurušić: If Montenegro was not a member of NATO, there would be Russian ships in its ports, Vučić is aware that he can only delay and raise tensions

One of Russia’s tactics is a constant attempt to create a rift among NATO member countries, and the Balkans is a place it wants to use for destabilization, such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Montenegro.

As a member of NATO, Montenegro is very important to them because it has access to the sea, while the current uncertainty with the Government and pro-Serbian and pro-Russian influence is in their favor. If it was not a member of NATO, there would certainly already be Russian ships in Montenegrin ports, the journalist of “Jutarnji list” Vlado Vurušić said in the program “Znam da znaš”, Gradska RTV.

In his view, the Russian army is not achieving the results it envisioned at the beginning of the war, which is why it has decided to “return Ukraine to the Stone Age” in a brutal way.

“They have launched reckless missile attacks on infrastructure and civilian targets all over Ukraine to demoralise them and leave them in very bad living conditions. It is a tactic that cannot win the war, but it is terribly reminiscent of Germany in World War II,” said Vurušić.

He says it is still uncertain how long the war will last, but adds that it is hard to believe it will end in the spring, as some analysts predict.

“For Russia, the fortifications it is trying to build against Crimea and the Donbas are crucial to stop the advance of the Ukrainian forces, which are somewhat weakened behind Kherson, but the Russian public is aware that they cannot win this war, while the Ukrainians are not strong enough to win Ukraine is also mentioned in the peace talks, but all this remains on the sidelines because they do not suit anyone at the moment.

The Russians know that the Ukrainians now have a much stronger negotiating position, and Ukraine does not want to negotiate because they are doing well”, said Vurušić and reminded that the consequences of the war in Ukraine are most felt in the countries of the so-called front lines, which are directly threatened

The issue of Kosovo-Serbia relations has been strained for years, and this, he believes, is another Russian card to destabilize this area.

He adds that Serbia should accept the fact of Kosovo’s independence and not block its accession to the EU, which reduces Vučić’s room for maneuver, and the most important issue that is hidden behind the story about license plates is the achievement of a Association of Serbian municipalities.

“The EU said that according to the Brussels agreement it should be discussed, but this is a catch because everyone perceives the Association of Serbian municipalities differently. The EU is afraid, as Belgrade reads it, that this community will not be a Republika Srpska, i.e. a federalisation of Kosovo, which would make Kosovo a non-functioning state.

The Serbs in Kosovo now have the ability to stop important decisions, because for many the Kosovo Assembly does not have enough votes, but this is certainly less of a danger than the ‘Bosnianisation’ of Kosovo. Ukraine has also rejected similar proposals for Donbas”, Vurusic explains.

In his view, there should be room for agreement, but the question is how both sides are willing to compromise.

“Even if the issue of number plates is delayed, this will not bring concrete solutions, while Vucic is aware that at the moment he can only delay things and raise tensions. On Kosovo, he is under additional pressure because of the delay in imposing sanctions against Russia, but he is certainly supported by a good part of the public because his media is pro-Russian”, he stresses.

Vurušić concludes that freezing the Kosovo issue would not affect his position in Serbia, which could only change if the EU withheld large donations, but Russia now has too many problems of its own and is losing influence in all areas./Danas/