Published 12:00 IST, September 7th 2020
Serbia, Russia engage in a diplomatic spat after spokesperson trolls US-brokered deal
Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman ridiculed Serbia's President on a social media post after he signed a U.S.-sponsored deal between Serbia and Kosovo.
Russia's Foreign Ministry spokesperson ridiculed Serbia's President on a social media post after he signed a US-sponsored deal between Serbia and Kosovo sparking a diplomatic spat between traditional allies Moscow and Belgrade. Spokesperson Maria Zakharova shared a picture on Facebook showing Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic sitting in front of US President Donald Trump at his Oval Office in Washington.
Zakharova mocked Vucic
Zakharova mocked Vucic in a comment on the Facebook post saying, "If you were invited to the DBD, and the chair was put as if you were in questioning, sit down as in photo #2 Whoever you are. Just believe me. UPD I apologize, but my post was misinterpreted! The only thing that was held in it was the rejection of arrogant attitude from the ′′ exceptional ".
"Protocol tricks have become one of the techniques that American officials regularly go to artificially create the visibility of their own exclusivity. And this is unacceptable", she added.
As per reports, Vucic and other Serbian officials reacted furiously in response to the post. Zakharova apologized on Twitter later on Sunday, saying that her post had been misunderstood. The Serbian president's office reportedly spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stressing the “sincerely close ties" between the two states. Vucic reportedly said that he defended Serbia's friendly relations with Russia during his visit to the White House which includes an arms purchase and refused to impose sanctions on Russia over its policies in Ukraine.
US President Donald Trump on Friday, September 4, announced the normalisation of economic ties between Serbia and Kosovo in a peace deal. Trump said the two countries were able to reach a major breakthrough after years of failed negotiations and touted the normalisation a "truly historic commitment".
Serbia and Kosovo share no diplomatic relations since Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, a move which Serbia rejects. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovo’s Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti had been talking to Trump administration officials for the past few days in Washington before the US President announced the historic commitment by both the nations on Friday. However, it can be noted that the announcement gave Trump a major diplomatic win ahead of the crucial November poll.
Updated 12:00 IST, September 7th 2020