Tadić: Serbia will never recognize independent Kosovo

“A
precedent would be set were Serbia to have a part of its territory
taken from it against its will—and that’s what imposed independence for
Kosovo essentially is—which would in turn lead to an escalation of many
existing conflicts, a re-ignition of some frozen conflicts and
provocation of who knows how many new conflicts,” explained the president.

Serbia
cannot accept “fragmentation“ of its country, and in that sense “is no
different from any other internationally recognized state,“ he stressed.

“Nor will we accept Serbia’s isolation, as we take decisive steps towards fully-fledged membership of the EU,“ Tadić continued.

The president said that preservation of territorial integrity and close cooperation with Europe and the world were the essential principles of Serbian national interest and stressed that these would not change.

“In my opinion, serious talks on Kosovo are necessary now,“ he said, citing as his reasons the protection of Serbian heritage , the resumption of the international presence in Kosovo, and the building of a stable, democratic and multi-ethnic society in the province.

Tadić warned that if no talks were organized in the coming weeks, all three key sides in the Kosovo crisis—Belgrade, Priština and the international community—would pay “an unacceptably high price“, and that that was “something that none of us can afford.“