EUROPEAN LEADERSHIP SHOULD CHANGE APPROACH TOWARDS DODIK

BELGRADE, APRIL 4 /SRNA/ - The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary Peter Szijjarto says the European leadership should change its approach towards the President of Republika Srpska Milorad Dodik, and that the will of the Serb people must be respected.

Szijjarto believes that what the European leadership is doing towards President Dodik is very dangerous because their approach very clearly illuminates their approach to the entire Balkans, which is disrespect for the will of the local people.

"Dodik did not get his position in the lottery, but in the elections. Therefore, the Serb people, the people of Republika Srpska want him to be their leader, so everyone must respect that," Sijarto told Politika.

He emphasized that the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, was elected by the people of Serbia, which must be respected.

"Therefore, the will of the Serb people must be respected, just as the will of all the people in the Western Balkans. What we see is that many Western Europeans simply do not care about the will of the people. They do not care about the will of the people in the Western Balkans, they want to dictate," explained Szijjarto.

According to him, if the Europeans don't like someone because of his political approach or whatever, "they try to eliminate him, enter him to the sanctions list, they want to get rid of him, and they finance political movements from the outside."

"The way Western Europeans approach President Dodik is not only a humiliation for him, but also for the people of Republika Srpska. That approach must change, while our approach is based on respect. My position is that the leaders of the Western Balkans should not be talked to, but that we must talk with them. If this does not change, I do not see a bright future for the cooperation," Szijjarto concluded.