Milo Đukanović, as the seven-time Prime Minister, and the current President of Montenegro, gave an interview for the Podgorica portal CDM in which, referring to current topics, he stated that in the 1990s, Serbian nationalism promoted the idea of all Serbs in one state, which is
By the way, more than half of this interview is dedicated to the Serbian Orthodox Church, Serbia and the Serbian world.
Here is the most interesting part of the interview without shortening and in the original:
At least at first glance, the current democratically elected government does not push European values to the forefront. How does this contradict the European aspirations of citizens?
Đukanović : Although the new government is considered anti-European, Greater Serbian and one that cultivates a policy of some irrational attitude towards the Serbian Orthodox Church and pro-Russian feelings, it is clear to that government that Montenegro is already far on the European path. It is clear to them that withdrawal from NATO and the European path is not possible and that the government continues on the foundations of the previous government. The problem is that words alone are not enough. By acting, they need to prove that they belong to that value system. And this is where this new government stumbles on every specific issue.
Last year clearly showed the government’s immaturity to meet what Montenegro’s European goals are. And that, unfortunately, was also a time of state decline, in the economic, health, as well as institutional areas, and ultimately in the political area. With all due respect to the will of the citizens, I believe that the government has not passed the exam, and now we are experiencing noticeable changes in the mood of people who want a different government before the expiration of this term, to return to conquer the next stages to its European goal.
Scenes of religious raids on the streets of Montenegro give the impression that the whole region still stinks a little too much in the 90s. Is that a wrong impression?
Djukanovic: I am even stricter in that assessment. It’s not reminiscent of the 90s, but that’s it. In the 1990s, Serbian nationalism promoted the idea of all Serbs in one state. That was the official policy of Serbia, and they achieved that. Serbian nationalists from Sarajevo then shouted that their rights in Bosnia were threatened and demanded that Serbia protect their rights. Milosevic stepped into that noose and we know how horribly bloody it ended: with almost 150,000 human casualties and an epilogue in The Hague.
photo: EPA Boris Pejović And what now? Now it’s about the Serbian world?
Đukanović: Instead of all Serbs in one country, we have the slogan “Serbian world”. Senior officials of the Government of Serbia say that the task of the current generation of Serbs is to unite all Serbs and thus protect their, allegedly endangered national rights. It’s just a differently shaped same goal. All this, of course, was accompanied by a serious offensive, media, financial, intelligence, with the aim of achieving what they did not in the early 90’s.
What is the difference between today’s time and the 90’s?
Đukanović : At that time, the Greater Serbia nationalists had many more instruments at their disposal. They had a federal army (JNA), federal laws – which, in addition to nationalist abuse, prescribed, among other things, that Montenegrin citizens had to respond to a call-up to the army, otherwise they were imprisoned. They had at their disposal the federal police, the customs, the security service, all the federal organs that they could abuse against those parts of the state that they saw as their prey.
Today there is no such thing, today the Serbian Orthodox Church is the only cross-border infrastructure of Serbian nationalism. If you simply tell someone in the West that there is a dispute between the state and a religious community in Montenegro, they will understand that the state is not flexible enough, and even if it is a state from the Balkans, with a communist past, it may immediately seem
But they do not understand that this is not a question of religious freedoms, but a question of instrumentalization of the religious community to destroy the sovereignty of neighboring states that the project of a greater Serbia would be realized, this time under the slogan of the “Serbian world.”
Can it pass?
Djukanovic: Now the market for a large-scale project is significantly narrow. Greater Serbian nationalism has lost its strongholds in Croatia and, regardless of whether they want to admit it, it has lost them in Kosovo as well. He is left with Montenegro and Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Of course, they do not want to give up Republika Srpska, but the priority to attack is a serious risk, because Dayton is a product of the international community and its authors will defend that product very decisively and to the end. Nobody likes to go into conflict with the authors of Dayton, the Americans.
Montenegro seems to them easier prey in this regard. We in Montenegro are extremely determined not to allow a repeat of the tragedy from the end of the 20th century. The experience of the last few years has awakened Montenegrin patriotism to such an extent that it would be difficult for Serbia to do us a greater favor.
Patriotism or nationalism?
Djukanovic: Patriotism. In our country, nationalism has never gained much momentum, besides, we have never endangered anyone with Montenegrin nationalism. Our policy was and remains that we do not want to fight against Serbian or any other nationalism with Montenegrin nationalism, but we fight with the civic concept of our society.
I am firm convinced that Montenegro can survive only as a state of citizens. If you look at the composition of the population, it is clear that the society of citizens is the shield that protects us from backward nationalism.
Kurir.rs/CDM
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