If we refused dialogue, they'd have gone after RTS: Vucic on meeting with opposition representatives

The president spoke after a tour of the construction site for the Cortanovci viaduct on the railway section Stara Pazova-Novi Sad

After visiting the construction site of the Cortanovci viaduct on the railway section Stara Pazova-Novi Sad, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic took questions from journalists about current topics from the country and the region.

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ON EAVESDROPPING

When it comes to his decision to remove the "confidential" label from documents regarding his following, the president said he felt it was in the public interest to learn the truth.

"I didn't speak about it for seven years. I removed the secrecy label in accordance with the law, because people in Serbia need to hear the truth," he said and emphasized that it was a lie he did it because of his connection with a Partizan fan - the story that some individuals have tried to launch.

He said that many who were attacking him were actually scared that he could remove the label from other documents, too, when serious things could be revealed about them - but he stressed that he would not do that.

As for the person who introduced themselves as a journalist with the KRIK website, and followed the wife of Minister Sinisa Mali's brother, Vucic said that several persons have been detained and that he was waiting for the authorities to inform him of the details of the investigation.

ON THE GOVERNMENT MEETING WITH THE OPPOSITION

The president of Serbia said that he supports the conversation between representatives of the authorities and the opposition and that he was always in favor of that, but that he could not attend because the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia does not allow it.

"I said that I would always support dialogue and I said that I was always in favor of dialogue. The reason (Dragan) Djilas is not there is because he's bathing (vacationing) and he needs to tell people that," said the president of Serbia, commenting on the absence of Dragan Djilas from today's meeting between the authorities and the opposition.

He also said what he thought would have happened if they refused the dialogue.

"If we didn't accept the dialogue, they (the opposition) would have said, 'Let's demolish RTS (public broadcaster), let's take to the streets'. After we accepted, they are now saying that we have admitted that the (election) conditions are poor. No, the conditions are excellent," he said.

ON THE PERSON WHO FOLLOWED THE FAMILY OF SINISA MALI

The president of Serbia said that the person who followed the common-law wife of Predrag Mali, the brother of Finance Minister Sinisa Mali, has been identified, and that more persons have been arrested in the case.

Asked about the interrogation of one person in connection with the case, Vucic said that he learned that several persons had been arrested, and that the identity of the person who followed the wife of Predrag Mali has been determined.

"I'm waiting for competent authorities to inform me, if they do, but I'm certain that the citizenship of that person and what they say will be very interesting. I've heard very strange explanations from other people," Vucic said, adding that individuals on social networks lied that his party, the SNS, had hired someone in England to follow Mali's wife.

"Let's see this Englishman from the SNS. Sure, we went to England and hired an Englishman to follow Predrag Mali's wife. It was a worldwide conspiracy, so people will be delighted to hear such information," Vucic told reporters in Cortanovci.

ON GIVING FORMER THAI PRIME MINISTER SERBIAN PASSPORT

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said today, on the occasion of the granting of the Serbian passport to former Prime Minister of Thailand Yingluk Shinawatra, that he doesn't see any problem in this and is in favor of a complete liberalization of the allocation of Serbian passports.

"I don't see this as a problem for us, especially if the government could see any economic or other benefit to our country," said Vucic, answering journalists' questions, and adding that "passports are not some sacred thing."

"Bring people to our country, it's better to bring people, we've lost many thanks to the poverty they left us in," the president explained.

He stressed that he could not talk about all individual cases, but that he was generally in favor of a complete liberalization of the allocation of Serbian passports.

"Above all, I would like to see it on the example of citizens of some other countries in the region, but also of all others," Vucic said.

(Telegraf.rs)