Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikola Selaković stated today that President Aleksandar Vučić had won 7.3 times as many votes in the diaspora in the elections on 3 April as in the 2017 elections ― an incredible rise and a sign of assured support for the diligent and hard work as well as for advocating for the interests of Serbia which had returned to the world and the European stage, rejoining the list of credible countries.

Minister Selaković said that slightly less than 40,000 voters were registered in the diaspora, who were allowed to vote in more than 70 polling stations, and that President Vučić had even won in unexpected polling stations, such as Washington, D.C., Abu Dhabi, Vienna, Zurich, Paris, Budapest, Bucharest, Sofia, Berlin, and Düsseldorf.

 

Minister Selaković added that President Vučić had also gained a convincing victory in the countries of the former Yugoslavia, reflected in the results of the elections in Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Croatia. “President Vučić has achieved fantastic results in Vukovar, Doboj, Drvar, Banja Luka. It is a victory to be proud of, a victory which ― it seems ― the Serbs, wherever they live, feel as their own, as the victory of Serbia,” Minister Selaković emphasised.

 

Minister Selaković described President Vučić’s victory as historic because he, as a politician actively in power since 2012, had been winning more and more votes in the elections each time ― an expression of citizens' gratitude for all the results President Vučić had achieved to date. “As someone who works diligently, devotedly and committedly for the country and its people, he has now been rewarded,” Minister Selaković pointed out, adding that President Vučić had received numerous congratulations from world leaders on his election victory.

 

According to Minister Selaković, the policy of President Vučić guaranteed peace and stability. “At a time when the whole world is a big seismic zone, one can see how much peace and stability is lacking in many countries. Whoever can guarantee peace and stability, guarantees economic growth and, thus, higher salaries and pensions, and better living conditions. This is the first time in modern history that we have peace and stability,” he said.

 

Minister Selaković noted that the most important thing was that the elections had been conducted in a democratic, fair, and completely transparent manner. “The elections were clean, conducted in a democratic spirit. Serbia has shown that it is a peaceful, prosperous country whose citizens get to decide who will be their president and who will be the ruling majority,” he explained.

 

Minister Selaković also noted that President Vučić had also had a convincing win in places where members of national minorities live, including Subotica and Priboj. “We had a polling station at our embassy in Sofia where more than 80 percent of the votes went to President Vučić, and 85 percent of those who voted were members of the Bulgarian national minority, and they eagerly supported Aleksandar Vučić,” he ​​said.

 

Regarding the criticism of the European Parliament's Rapporteur for Kosovo Viola von Cramon about the elections in Serbia, Minister Selaković responded that while everyone was entitled to feeling upset if they disliked an outcome, they had to respect the sanctity of the Serbian citizens’ votes, their choice to go the polling stations and choice of representative they wish to see as president, in the central government and in the local government.

 

According to Minister Selaković, Viola von Cramon did not object to the fact that Serbs in the Province of Kosovo and Metohija were not allowed to vote there, and her statements and actions unequivocally showed that she does not care about the protection of the rights of Serbs and other non-Albanians in the Province. He said that Viola von Cramon used every opportunity to attack Serbia and President Vučić and to protest against Serbia's fight to protect the Serbian state and its national interests in Kosovo and Metohija, and that her every attack and senseless statement will be met with fierce response because the Serbian Government knows what it is defending and how important it is to fight on every occasion to protect Serbia's interests in Kosovo and Metohija.

 

Minister Selaković added that Albin Kurti's decision not to allow the elections in Kosovo and Metohija was a logical consequence of Kurti's and his government's unilateral behaviour being unlimitedly tolerated ― a Pandora's box that was opened by the supporters of Albanian separatism in 2008 and the sponsors of the so-called Kosovo independence. “At that time, the supporters did not object to the change of borders or to the separatist policy but supported both. While Serbia has been promoting dialogue, someone comes along who, without caring about others’ opinions, makes decisions which completely go against the spirit of democracy, dialogue, and agreement on key issues, e.g., on 16 January bans the referendum, and on 3 April bans the elections,” noted Minister Selaković.