NEW YORK / BELGRADE – The United Nations General Assembly adopted on Monday a resolution, drafted by the European Union, Ukraine and the United Kingdom, on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, reaffirming the UN’s “commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, unity, and territorial integrity”.
The resolution was supported by 93 UN member states, including Serbia, while 18 voted against it, among them the United States. Meanwhile, 65 countries abstained. The US, under the new Trump administration, opposed the resolution and submitted its own, which did not mention support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and referred to Russia’s invasion as a “conflict”.
Several hours after the vote, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić stated on Happy TV that Serbia had “mistakenly” voted in favour of the EU resolution.
“I apologize to the citizens of Serbia. I take full responsibility for this because I can not keep track of everything”, Vučić said.
He emphasized that Serbia should have abstained from the European resolution, as was the case for the resolution proposed by the US.
“I have no one to blame but myself, as I did not manage to address this matter in time”, Vučić said, adding that his fatigue likely played a role.
“Unfortunately, we were not abstaining. I regret it deeply. Serbia has endured the most difficult position for three years, and we will continue to act responsibly. I will strive to work harder and more diligently”, he said.
According to the Serbian Constitution, it is the Government and not the President that implements Serbia’s foreign policy. Vučić has long been a subject of criticism by a part of the public for de facto making decisions outside his constitutional responsibilities.
Following Vučić’s public apology, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said to the TASS agency that Russia understood Serbia’s vote for the “anti-Russian” UN resolution was a “technical mistake”.
“The Kremlin acknowledges the prompt apology from Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić. His swift response regarding the accidental adoption of the anti-Russian resolution is appreciated in Moscow. Russia understands that this was a technical mistake”, Peskov said.
Serbia is still the only candidate country from the Western Balkans that has not aligned with the EU sanctions against Russia.