Selaković with Guterres about the UNSC session on Kosovo and Metohija

16. Oct 2021.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Serbia, Nikola Selaković, met in New York with UN Secretary General António Guterres, with whom he discussed the UN Security Council session on Kosovo and Metohija, and the meeting lasted almost three times longer than the protocol stipulated.

Minister Selaković said that the UN Secretary General showed extremely great interest in the events in our region.

"We talked about the UNSC session and the report of the Secretary General on the UNMIK Mission and its activities in the previous six months, from March to September, where we received assurances that the UNMIK Mission will continue to act impartially in accordance with the mandate given to it in accordance with the UNSC Resolution 1244", said the head of Serbian diplomacy.

Minister Selaković stated that the reaction of the UN Secretary General to the latest events in Kosovo and Metohija was the same as the reaction of head of UNMIK, Zahir Tanin, who spoke about it objectively and pithily.

"The reaction is obvious, the briefing that Tanin gave at the session of the UNSC is also the position of the UN Secretary General. It was not previously common to state in a briefing that which was not covered by the reporting period. The fact that Tanin dedicated almost 40% of his briefing to that situation was shared by the Secretary General himself. We witnessed that during this meeting", said Minister Selaković.

According to him, he informed the UN Secretary General about the results of economic and social reforms in Serbia, as well as the initiative of President Aleksandar Vučić, "Open Balkans", which was recognized as a chance for the region by the prime ministers of Northern Macedonia and Albania.

Minister Selaković added that Guterres welcomed the initiative.

The head of Serbian diplomacy said that at the meeting with Guterres, he conveyed the interests of Serbia, which considers the UN the most important international organization, which is key to preserving peace and stability in the whole world, but also, which respects the territorial integrity and sovereignty of member states.

Minister Selaković said that Guterres was especially interested in the events in B&H and that he emphasized the need for greater and more intensive cooperation between Serbia and Croatia, in order to stabilize our region as much as possible.

The head of Serbian diplomacy also stated that he was interested in whether the UN Secretary General would have the opportunity to visit Belgrade.