The President of Montenegro, Milo Đukanović, accused Serbia and Russia of using the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) to undermine the Montenegrin pro-Western government, which wants membership in the European Union (EU), reports Reuters.
Reuters writes that Đukanović, who has ruled for more than three decades, said that the series of protests against the Law on Freedom of Religion, led by the Serbian Orthodox Church, was an attempt to question the independence of Montenegro.
"If you are wondering if this is the continuation of (attempts to) destroy Montenegro and the obstruction of its intention to continue its path towards European and Euro-Atlantic integration, there is no doubt about that," said Đukanović in an interview with Reuters.
"Moscow was unequivocal in showing its interests in the current (religious) problem in Montenegro," he said.
Đukanović accused Belgrade of reviving the nationalist concept of Greater Serbia, which contributed to the Balkan wars of the XNUMXs and the disintegration of the former Yugoslavia.
"We have no doubt that all the mechanisms for realizing the project of the Greater Serbian state have been activated and that Montenegro is also a target," Đukanović told the British agency.
Reuters reports that Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, rejected Djukanovic's claims, saying that "no one can undermine what he is doing, more than Djukanovic himself."
Reuters also states that the Prime Minister of Serbia, Ana Brnabić, rejected Djukanović's comments.
Speaking about the protests that Đukanović is facing, Brnabić said that he "has a problem in his own country and with the citizens of Montenegro".
"I am surprised by the rhetoric of President Đukanović ... Serbia left the XNUMXs long ago and turned to the future," Brnabić said, adding that Serbia demands that Serbs in Montenegro have the right to their own language and religion, writes Reuters
The British agency also writes that the protests in Montenegro began in December due to the law that allows the state to take ownership of church property if the church cannot prove that it was the owner before 1918 - when the then Kingdom of Montenegro joined the Kingdom of Serbs. Croats and Slovenes, predecessors of Yugoslavia.
"The Serbian Orthodox Church is dominant in Montenegro, a country of 620.000 people, and has around 12 million members, mostly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia," according to Reuters.
Serbia and Montenegro, writes Reuters, are negotiating on joining the EU.
Montenegro joined NATO in 2017, but Belgrade does not want membership in this alliance.
"Ethnic Serbs make up about a third of the Montenegrin population. Many Serbs have roots in Montenegro, while tens of thousands of Montenegrins live in Serbia," according to Reuters.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, writes the British agency, said that Belgrade will not interfere in the affairs of Montenegro, but he also said that Serbia will help the Serbian minority there.
"Serbia is rushing into the dangerous trap of protecting the allegedly endangered rights of (minority) Serbs ... at the same time endangering the sovereignty of other countries," Djukanovic said, according to Reuters.
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