More than 20 members of the British Parliament have called for a significant change in the foreign policy approach towards Serbia after President Aleksandar Vučić's participation in the military parade in Moscow on May 9, BGNES reported.

"Today I wrote a letter to the Foreign Secretary calling for a significant change in our foreign policy approach to Serbia following President Vučić's participation in the military parade in Moscow on May 9. The letter was signed by 25 other parliamentarians," British MP Emma Llewellyn posted online.

The letter states, among other things, that Serbia under the leadership of Aleksandar Vučić has strengthened its ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin, "especially as the only candidate country for the European Union that has not imposed any sanctions on Russia despite the horrific crimes committed against Ukraine since 2014."

"Furthermore, President Vučić is seeking to destabilize Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the wider Balkan region by working closely with Putin's Russia, which seeks to prevent its full-scale invasion of Ukraine," the MPs' letter to the British foreign minister, quoted by RSE, said.

During Vučić's rule, Serbia has seen significant democratic backsliding, with constant attacks on the media, political opposition, and civil society, as well as widespread corruption, which has contributed to mass protests against his government in recent months, the letter adds.

Successive British governments have consistently supported Serbia's Euro-Atlantic integration in the hope that it will bring freedom, economic prosperity, respect for human and civil rights, and distance Serbia from Putin's Russia.

"While this was once a laudable goal, the events of May 9 show once and for all that the Vučić government has no interest in severing its ties with Russia, while actively promoting the ultra-nationalist, expansionist idea of a 'Greater Serbia', which risks plunging the Balkans back into bloody conflict," the letter further states.

Therefore, the parliamentarians "demand that the government change course, starting with a series of targeted sanctions against President Vučić, his government, and collaborators, and using all necessary diplomatic means to encourage our allies to follow suit."

"If we do not send a strong message to the Serbian government now, we risk strengthening the resolve of the Vučić regime and failing to prevent the collapse of the fragile security situation in the Balkans," the MPs wrote in a request to the British foreign minister.

They also emphasized their support for "the students protesting in Serbia and the citizens seeking a better future for their country, free from authoritarianism and corruption."

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on May 9, during a meeting with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, that Moscow "appreciates Serbia's independent and sovereign course in international relations."

The bilateral meeting between Putin and Vučić in Moscow is their first official meeting since Russia's invasion of Ukraine more than three years ago. | BGNES