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Serbian President-Elect Vucic Praises Russia's Role in Defeating Fascism

© SputnikSerbian Prime Minister and President-elect Aleksandar Vucic
Serbian Prime Minister and President-elect Aleksandar Vucic - Sputnik International
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Serbian Prime Minister and President-elect Aleksandar Vucic put on a St. George ribbon presented to him by Sputnik and said that he is proud of belonging to a nation that from the very beginning fought for freedom and against fascism.

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According to Vucic, Serbia would not be among the winners of World War II without help and assistance from the Soviet Union.

Congratulating all those who fought against fascism on the battlefields of WWII, Vucic told Sputnik Serbia that May 9, Victory Day, is a great day for all mankind.

"First of all, when we celebrate this date, we commemorate dozens of millions of those who sacrificed their lives for the sake of mankind and the basic values of freedom," Vucic said.

Vucic reminded that the Russian people bore the heaviest burden of the war and that the Soviet Union suffered the heaviest losses in the fight against fascism. At the same time, according to the Serbian leader, the Russian people demonstrated unparalleled resoluteness, firmness and courage.

"Enormous fortitude and courage won [the war]. Leningrad was under siege for 900 days, but people managed to survive without food and water, in terrible conditions. After the breakthrough on Minsk and withdrawal from Smolensk the situation was stabilized and the great victories were achieved in Kursk and Stalingrad. I think all of the above proves that because of their courage and strength the [Russian] people are capable of anything," Vucic underscored.

He said that Serbs fought on the side of those against the Axis powers. In terms of the percentage of the country’s population, Serbia’s human losses were among the heaviest in World War II.

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"Serbs, including in the region to the west of the Drina and the Danube were the main victims of the Independent State of Croatia and other fascist powers," he said.

Vucic stressed that this is the reason why those people must never be forgotten but at the same time "we all should think about the future because our principal goal is to preserve freedom, independency and sovereignty."

"We [Serbs] were always courageous enough. But what we need to increase is our wisdom and intention to preserve peace and stability. We should not let anyone to be a threat to our ideals. There is no greater value than freedom," Vucic concluded.

 

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