27 Jan 2023.

Minister Vučević attends St. Sava Day celebration in Skopje

Acting as a delegate of the President of the Republic and Supreme Commander of the Serbian Armed Forces Aleksandar Vučić, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Miloš Vučević has attended the celebration of St. Sava Day – the national holiday of the Republic of North Macedonia. The celebration was held in Skopje’s National Theatre tonight.

The President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, was awarded the St. Sava Charter, for everything he has done for the Serbian community in the Republic of North Macedonia, which was presented to Minister Vučević, as a representative of the President of Serbia, by the chair of the organizing committee for the event, Ivan Stoilković.

Minister Vučević addressed the audience, saying that the St. Sava Day celebration has been held for years to mark the national holiday of Serbs living in North Macedonia, and that it is traditionally held in Skopje, under the auspices of the President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, and the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia.

According to Minister of Defence, the goal is for “Svetosavlje”, as an idea of ​​enlightenment, harmony and fraternal love, to remain inextricably woven into our national being and for future generations to "learn how to live a life worthy of the ideal that has sustained and united us throughout the centuries".

- Saint Sava does not belong only to Serbs. He belongs to all people of good will. Saint Sava belongs to all Christians. His work is timeless and it still inspires us today. “Svetosavlje” is a foothold for the entire Serbian nation, because it has showed us the path of faith and goodness, it has showed us what we should learn, what we should be and where we should go, said the Minister of Defence.

He said that in 1219, Serbia had stood up and decided to make its own decisions.

- And when Saint Sava brought autocephaly to the Serbian Orthodox Church, he also brought freedom to our people and our country, as well as the right to speak our own language, to make our own decisions and choose our own path. And 804 years later, while dangerous geopolitical games are being played, Serbia remains independent and its own, dependent exclusively on the interests of its people, Minister Vučević said.

Today, Serbia is facing the same trials and tribulations as it did in Saint Sava’s times, but "thanks to the wise and responsible leadership of President Aleksandar Vučić, Serbia is moving forward bravely and holding its head high and it is developing despite all the challenges that the whole world, and Serbia in particular, is facing".

- The President of the Republic of Serbia and the entire leadership of our country pursue a policy that rests on the St. Sava Covenant. Serbia is unequivocally and strongly committed to pursuing the policy of peace and the freedom-loving spirit, to living in fraternal harmony and love both with each other and with other nations, to bringing prosperity to our people, to building a better and safer future for our descendants, said the Minister of Defence.
 

Serbia attaches great importance to improving bilateral relations with the Republic of North Macedonia, Minister Vučević said.

- As good friends and neighbours, together we have launched a major development initiative called "Open Balkan", we have settled the decades-long burning issue between the two churches, which we are proud of, bringing the two brotherly nations even closer together, because everything that unites us is good and beneficial. It is no coincidence that today the construction of the magnificent Church of St. Sava is being completed on the same site where his relics were burned long ago. Also, today we can proudly stand in front of the first monument erected in honour of St. Sava’s father and the founder of the medieval Serbian state, the great Stefan Nemanja, said the Minister of Defence.

The paths of “Svetosavlje” must remain unsullied, because they guide us through life and future, he said.

- This great holiday, which is celebrated by all Serbs in the mother country, whose rich symbolism reminds us to be better people and responsible citizens, to preserve the memory of our glorious ancestors and at the same time to build a secure future for our descendants, to be united, to cherish the Serbian language and the Cyrillic alphabet, to foster good relations with our neighbours, to strive for a peaceful and better future. Following the paths of Saint Sava, we cannot make mistakes, we cannot go astray, and that is the only way we can defend the right of our children and our children's children to live in freedom and peacefully coexist with all our neighbours in these areas, said Minister Vučević, extending his best wishes for St. Sava Day and expressing gratitude to the hosts for their warm hospitality.

Addressing the audience, the Prime Minister of the Republic of North Macedonia, Dimitar Kovacevski, wished everyone a happy holiday, on behalf of the government of that country and on his own behalf, expressing hope that this holiday would be celebrated for a long time. He said that Saint Sava’s ideas would go down in history and be remembered by the nations living in this region. He added that we should be united in our common idea of ​​peace and that only thus we can move forward as nations living in this region.

Radovan Kovačević, acting as the representative of the President of Republika Srpska Milorad Dodik, and Ivan Stojiljković, the organizer of the event, also addressed the audience, and dramatist Dragoslav Bokan gave a lecture on Saint Sava.

The Ministry of Defence "Stanislav Binički" Artistic Ensemble gave performance at the event, with soloists and the Mixed Choir, starting with the performance of St. Sava’s Anthem. Folk and spiritual compositions alternated, which the audience greeted with thunderous applause.

Earlier today, Minister Vučević also visited the "St. Cyril and Methodius" Primary School in the village of Kučevište, where he attended a school celebration of St. Sava Day.

The Ministry of Defence delegation led by Minister Vučević visited the Church of Saint Michael the Archangel and the ossuary where Minister Vučević laid a wreath to honour Serbian soldiers who died in the First World War and attended the commemoration.
 

23 Dec 2022.

Ceremonial closing of the exhibition „Memories from the Ashes: National Library of Serbia on 6 April 1941“

The Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in the Republic of North Macedonia, in cooperation with the Belgrade Museum of Genocide Victims and with the support of the National and University Library „St. Kliment Ohridski“ from Skopje, organised the closing ceremony and expert management of the exhibition „Memories from the Ashes: National Library of Serbia on 6 April 1941“.

The expert management of the exhibition, arranged by the author of the exhibition and Director of the Museum of Genocide Victims Dejan Ristić, was attended by numerous representatives of diplomatic missions, prominent cultural institutions, the Serbian community in North Macedonia and interested citizens.

On that occasion, the attendees were presented with the historical context and consequences of one of the biggest crimes against cultural heritage in the Second World War.

19 Dec 2022.

Skopje: Ambassador Jovanović interviewed for the Serbian language magazine Slovo

Ambassador of the Republic of Serbia in North Macedonia Nevena Jovanović gave a long interview for the December edition of the Serbian language magazine Slovo, issued by the Serbian cultural-information centre SPONA in the Republic of North Macedonia. She talked about the bilateral relations between Serbia and North Macedonia, the current situation in Kosovo and Metohija, the Open Balkan Initiative, the status of the Serbian community in North Macedonia, and the preservation and protection of the Serbian cultural heritage in North Macedonia.

Ambassador Jovanović stated that Serbia’s relations with the neighbouring North Macedonia were very good, close and friendly, and that their foundations were the strong cultural and historical connections between the two countries. She emphasised that the Republic of Serbia, led by President Aleksandar Vučić, was strongly committed to building good neighbourly relations and deeply dedicated to the preservation of peace and stability in the region, as one of its absolute priorities. In that context, she stressed that Serbia’s only interest with respect to North Macedonia was to further intensify the bilateral relations, which had been showing progress over the preceding few years. She also stated that the Open Balkan Initiative, as well as the resolution of the multi-decade dispute between the two Orthodox Christian Churches in May 2022, had certainly helped the two countries develop closer relations.

Talking about the Open Balkan Initiative, Ambassador Jovanović said that it provided an efficient and stimulating model of regional cooperation and further inter-connecting of Serbia, North Macedonia and Albania, and the region as a whole. She emphasised that the main objective of this Initiative, which promoted the four fundamental freedoms which the European Union was based on (free movement of goods, capital, services and people), was the improvement of the overall quality of life of our citizens. She also highlighted that the Open Balkan Initiative, through the agreements concluded up to date, provided mechanisms which would make it easier for citizens of Serbia, North Macedonia and Albania to face the consequences of the energy and food crisis and the difficult winter ahead.

As regards the geostrategic position of Serbia, Ambassador Jovanović emphasised that, in spite of everything, the Republic of Serbia, led by President Aleksandar Vučić, remained strongly committed to the preservation of peace and stability, and was doing everything in its power to protect the lives and interests of Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija. She described the policy of the Government of the Republic of Serbia and President Vučić as an open-handed, future-facing policy, and said that Serbia, although it was not infrequently faced with a policy of double standards, never allowed that to affect its commitment to preserving peace and stability at any cost.

To the question about the “different” views of Belgrade and Skopje in the matter of resolving the problems in Kosovo and Metohija, Ambassador Jovanović stated that the Republic of Serbia was committed to building good relations with North Macedonia, in spite of their different views about this matter, which was a vital and essential one for Serbia.

In her interview to the Slovo magazine, Ambassador Jovanović also talked about the status of the Serbian community in the Republic of North Macedonia, which, although numerous and active, was drastically declining in numbers according to the results of the latest population census. She said that a particularly worrying matter was the the number of people who had said they spoke Serbian, and emphasised that the preservation of the Serbian language was necessary in order to preserve the Serbian identity, culture and traditions.

Ambassador Jovanović also stressed that the preservation and safeguarding of the Serbian cultural heritage in North Macedonia was a comprehensive and highly responsible task, which required thorough and careful work in collaboration between relevant institutions of both the Republic of North Macedonia and the Republic of Serbia, and that the volume of that heritage obliged everyone to approach its preservation with particular attention.