28.02.2020.
Minister Vulin: Serbia has never been more a part of Republika Srpska nor has Republika Srpska ever been more a part of Serbia
The official reception at the Belgrade City Assembly, attended by the Minister of Defence Aleksandar Vulin, the Envoy of the President of the Republic and the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, marked the Day of Republika Srpska and the anniversary of the proclamation of the first Constitution of Republika Srpska.
The reception was also attended by the President of Republika Srpska Željka Cvijanović, the Speaker of the National Assembly Maja Gojković, Serbian Member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina Milorad Dodik, the Speaker of the National Assembly of Republika Srpska Nedeljko Čubrilović, the Prime Minister of Republika Srpska Radovan Višković and numerous other guests from all spheres of public life.Addressing everyone present, Minister Vulin said that the gathering to mark the holiday of Republika Srpska was not to remind Serbia that Republika Srpska exists but to get together, to see what was done in the past year and congratulate each other on the fact that "Serbia has never been more a part of Republika Srpska nor has Republika Srpska ever been more a part of Serbia." He also said that "Republika Srpska was not created because it was decided by some council of ambassadors, nor because it was the will of politicians or because the major world powers wanted to end the war with a single agreement."
- Republika Srpska was created out of the need of the Serbian people to protect themselves institutionally once and for all in the territories where they live, from the Jasenovac genocide and its recurrence. Republika Srpska arose from the deep conviction of the Serbian people that where there is no Serbian judge or police officer, no Member of Parliament or Prime Minister, where there is neither a Serbian priest to baptize them nor a doctor to treat them, there can be no justice or future for them, there can be no truth or progress, said the Envoy of the President and the Supreme Commander, Minister Vulin, adding that Serbia is worried when someone says that the Dayton Agreement will be replaced by the decision or will of some force or politician. It is worried because no one cares about the peace more than Serbia and the Serbian people, said the Minister of Defence.
According to Minister Vulin, the Serbian people have every right to gather in their capital, around their Serbia and the president they trust.
- Serbs cannot be the only people in the Balkans that have a number of different political views and goals when it comes to the basic justifications of its existence. Only gathered around our Serbia and our Belgrade when we make unified decisions can we be sure that we will last and fight for the little that we ask for - to speak our own language, write in our script, choose for ourselves what our church will be called, decide for ourselves where we live and how we live, never endangering others. The President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, never makes any moves without thinking about his Republika Srpska and the Serbs wherever they live, united and gathered together, Minister Vulin emphasized.
According to him, the people who "survived the Jasenovac daggers and the Mrkonjić caves do not have the right to disagree and not to think as one when it comes to their survival". He also said that "never again in heavy silence will Serbia turn its back on any Serb no matter where he or she lives“.- We need peace and I am not mistaken when I say that Aleksandar Vučić is the only independent political leader in the Balkans who endlessly and relentlessly seeks peace. He struggles, fights for it, often to his own detriment. And I am not mistaken when I say that the Serbian people are a nation that, more than any other nation, seeks peace, understanding, respect, but I will not be mistaken if I say that the Republic of Serbia will never remain silent to any insult to Republika Srpska, emphasized Minister Vulin, saying that "If you want Bosnia and Herzegovina to be successful, Republika Srpska must be successful, too. If you want a peaceful Bosnia and Herzegovina, then there must be a peaceful Republika Srpska. If you want Bosnia and Herzegovina to be respected then you must respect Republika Srpska as well. "
Serbian Member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Milorad Dodik, said that the leadership of Republika Srpska has been able to preserve the values on which the latter rests, despite the attempts to usurp it which have been made since its foundation. According to him, Republika Srpska is proof of the freedom of the Serbs in Bosnia and Herzegovina and their desire to live in peace.
It is important for Republika Srpska that Serbia is stable, strong and that it gets better every day and that is why, says Dodik, the eyes of Republika Srpska are turned to Serbia, where they come in order to build the future together.
The President of Republika Srpska Željka Cvijanović reiterated that Serbia is the only real support to Republika Srpska on its road to development, and that Republika Srpska is determined to continue nurturing brotherly and unbreakable ties with Serbia, further enhancing the co-operation which is more intense today than ever.- Republika Srpska is a guarantee of our survival, but also of our safety, development and prosperity, and that is why we are obliged to defend our dignity and institutions, as well as the powers that the Constitution gave us under the Dayton Agreement. We do not want anything that is not ours, but we will not allow anyone to take away from us what is ours – pointed out the President of Republika Srpska and said that Republika Srpska wants peace, cooperation and dialogue with everyone in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
On behalf of the organizers of the ceremony, guests were also greeted by Mladjen Cicovic, Head of the Republika Srpska Representative Office in Serbia and His Holiness Mr Stefan, the Bishop of Remesiana, who conveyed the blessing of His Holiness Mr Irinej, the Serbian Patriarch.
