The recent president of Montenegro, Milo Đukanović, said that it was "very dangerous and irregular" for the country to carry out the population census.
"The ideologues of Greater Serbia want to 'destroy' Montenegro. The first priority is to prove that Montenegro is a Serbian state. Montenegrin national identity is under attack because this paves the way for the destruction of Montenegrin independence. I hope that in Montenegro , nevertheless, to awaken a determined front of resistance to the change in the character of the state of Montenegro. It has no chance to survive as a national state. Montenegro is only defending itself with its civil character," Đukanović told Bosnian Federal Television.
"Montenegro should become the first additional part of the 'Serbian world'"
He also stated that "there will be no Montenegrins" in the new government of Montenegro.
"Serbia succeeded in Montenegro on August 30, 2020, and you still have two governments, which are everything but the Government of Montenegro. There is no basic concern for the interests of Montenegro. The second government also delivered the fundamental contract of the SOC, the Montenegrin identity, history... and now, through the results of the politicized census, he is trying to deliver the Montenegrin future, with the clear idea of trying to increase the statistical expression of the Serbian community. This should be done by the current government, which is already in a good arrangement with Belgrade. Montenegro should become the first additional part of the 'Serbian world'. It will not be easy with BiH. Dayton BiH is a child of the international community. It will not be easy to conquer the north of Kosovo either," Đukanović assessed.
In the interview, he also said that by 2020, Montenegro was seriously ahead of other countries in the Western Balkans due to the progress achieved in the negotiation process with the EU, and due to the trust it had gained in relation to important international investors.
"Montenegro is certainly the biggest loser of the processes that took place after August 30. Then the so-called liberation of Montenegro happened, that's how the representatives of the government presented it during these three years. 30 years of power is not usual in European political culture, that's how we are. and understood. This is the time of all kinds of decay, the agony of Montenegro. Every change does not have to be a change for the better," stated Đukanović.
"Russia has chosen those from Greater Serbia among the Balkan nationalists"
He points out that it was completely clear that Russia would not accept its failure in Montenegro.
"I would say that Russia relegated the pro-Serbian and pro-Russian parties to the background, and put the Serbian Orthodox Church first. By abusing the religious feelings of the people, the SPC mobilized them to defend the supposedly endangered holy places in Montenegro. Months of street protests began, which were not not at all religious, and this resulted in Montenegro losing its previous state-political course," said Đukanović and added:
"Those who deal with the formation of the government today have so far shown an absolute confusion, it is a little repackaged, the same majority from August 30, 2020, so the Montenegrins, as evidenced by the results of the elections of June 11, have not done enough in these three years clear conclusion that they made a mistake on August 30, 2020, they are still willing to wallow in the mud of Great Serbian nationalism. Montenegro is on its knees more and more every day".
Đukanović also said that it was logical that Russia "chose those of Greater Serbia among the Balkan nationalists".
"In his new policy, Putin announced historical revisionism. To renew the Cold War in some way. Serbia understands this as an opportunity to review the results from the recent past in the previous 30 years in the Western Balkans. I believe that geopolitical reasons and the reflections of those reasons on politics in region, led to a significant deterioration of the security and political conditions," Đukanović assessed.
Đukanović points out that the nationalists have woken up again, and that the idea of a 'Serbian world' is nothing more than a renewed idea of the project 'all Serbs in one state'.
"We may have hoped that after the Dayton Agreement, the ideas of large-state nationalism were buried. They were not. Today, we should all seriously reconsider why they were not. Despite the individual judgments in The Hague, the judgment on large-state nationalism was not correctly carried out. In Serbia, there was no condemnation of large-state nationalism ", he said.
Putin is trying to demonstrate the strength of the 'Russian bear', and this additionally arouses the enthusiasm of Greater Serbian nationalists in the region, Đukanović believes.
"Nationalists want to change borders, to create enlarged states that will be nationally and religiously homogeneous. In that scenario, there is no Bosnia and Herzegovina, no Montenegro, no independent Kosovo, no North Macedonia. And I believe that it can always end in only one way - that it always ends in war, crimes and genocides, and that is something we will hopefully be saved from," he said.
"I've been in politics a lot"
Đukakanović also said in an interview for Federal Television that there is no chance for him to return to politics.
"I've been in politics a lot, I've given 30 years of my good life to that activity. I don't regret it. Life has taught me not to be exclusive. However, I believe that the era of my involvement in state politics is over," Đukanović said.
He also stated that he has no knowledge of any indictment being written against him or any of his close associates.
"Experience teaches me that the one who tells you the most about corruption and crime in campaigns is the most realistic potential criminal," said Đukanović.
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