Speech by Minister Dačić at the reception commemorating the 20th anniversary of Serbia's membership in the Council of Europe

Below is the full text of his speech at the reception held in honour of this anniversary.

“Dear Secretary General,

Your Excellencies,

Dear colleagues,

Friends,

It is a great honour to address you on behalf of the Republic of Serbia in this magnificent establishment, in a home of democracy, human rights and the rule of law, at the seat of the Council of Europe, the organisation in which my country took its deserved place twenty years ago. 

The place which allowed us to, together with other European countries, take part in the further development of the continent on the basis of the ideals and values commonly recognised by its Member States, and to strive towards a future where every individual in Europe would feel free, safe, equal and dignified. As far back as 2003, the Republic of Serbia recognised the importance of commitment to the principles of the Council of Europe, and decided to share the responsibility for our joint future with the other European nations.

Over the previous twenty years, Serbia has considerably changed and developed in all spheres of society, in line with the free will of its citizens. But the Council of Europe has also been changing, developing and expanding its scope, adjusting it to the global trends, perhaps mostly in terms of economy and technological innovation – and these changes have affected or might affect human rights. This is reflected in a number of new Conventions that the Council of Europe has recently offered both to its Member States and to other countries. 

We are witnessing the fact that Europe, and the world as a whole, is progressively developing, which requires a well thought-out approach and a timely anticipation of the impacts of international developments on human rights. Over the last few years, we have seen how vulnerable we are to global challenges, having faced a migrant crisis, a pandemic, armed conflicts, and recently problems in the food and energy product supply chains. These challenging times require big decisions, but such decisions must never exclude the important principle of solidarity. The idea of solidarity is enriching each one of our activities on the resolution of common problems. Standing on the soil of his country, I am pleased to quote, in this context, the words of the great Victor Hugo that “what drives and drags the world are not machines but ideas”. 

Unfortunately, the war in Ukraine has been going on for over a year. On behalf of the Republic of Serbia, I wish to call all relevant international agents, above all the most influential countries, to use all their capacities in order to stop the war in Ukraine, and the suffering of civilians and the most vulnerable groups, particularly children, as soon as possible. Serbia, based on its own bitter experience, holds that there is no alternative to political dialogue, and pleads that a chance be given to negotiations and diplomacy. Serbia has always advocated for a consistent and principled observance of the principles of international law, including the principle of inviolability of the territorial integrity of all UN Member States, including Ukraine.

Dear friends,

The Republic of Serbia highly appreciates and respects all mechanisms of the Council of Europe, including the European Court of Human Rights. With a strong belief in the efficiency and importance of these mechanisms for the benefit of our citizens, Serbian authorities will continue to cooperate with these institutions in the future. It is of particular importance to Serbia that the standards of the Council of Europe should also be applied in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija, which is why Serbia strongly supports the organisation’ activity in this part of our country.

There is a great symbolic value in using this place to speak about the importance of observing international law. A consistent observance of the rule of law and all international rules is the best and the fastest way to achieve stability and prosperity in the international community. Our unity and agreement in terms of this principle makes us stronger in our safeguarding of the common ideals and in the achievement of the overall economic and social prosperity. As stated in Article 1 of the Statute of the Council of Europe: the aim of the Council of Europe is to achieve a greater unity between its members. Let’s observe the Statute.

Ignoring the Statute or any of its Articles would be very damaging to the Council of Europe, its functionality and its future perspective. Therefore, please allow me to call all the members, today, on the anniversary of my country's membership in the Council of Europe, to recall the spirit and the global circumstances which inspired the authors of the Statute and led to the establishment of this organisation back in 1949. I am sure you will agree that there are many parallels between the challenges Europe was facing at that time and the challenges it is facing today. The unity that we demonstrated then still binds us and serves as an inspiration today, as we have a responsibility to face any current and future challenges in the same way, with no unnecessary discord, and to make all decisions on the firm grounds of togetherness and consensus. 

Ultimately, Serbia remains committed to the postulates of the Statute of the Council of Europe and strives to, together with you, continue its efforts on improving the activity of this organisation. To all representatives of the Member States of the Council of Europe, I wish a lot of success in their work.

Thank you for your attention.”

Photo: Tanjug