Keepin touch

Whether you have a question, comment, suggestion or any problem in the purview of the government, send us your message and we will try to respond as soon as possible. If your problem is not in our purview, we will forward your message to the relevant institution.

The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Serbia determined to keep Kosovo-Metohija within its borders

Athens, 1 November 2005

Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica said today, during his visit to Mount Athos, that Serbia is determined to preserve Kosovo-Metohija within its borders and that taking away a part of Serbian territory by force is out of the question.

Author: Tanjug

Speaking with the journalists who are covering the Serbian government delegation’s two-day visit to Greece, Kostunica stressed that it is clear that seizing a part of Serbian territory and dividing Serbia is impossible.

The Serbian Prime Minister went to Mount Athos to visit the Hilandar Monastery, which was heavily damaged in a fire that ravished more that a half of this monastery last year.

“This is my third visit to the Hilandar Monastery and Greece, and as always, at this moment we all share thoughts of both Kosovo and Hilandar”, Kostunica said. He recalled that the fire destroyed Hilandar, which is the oldest and spiritually most important Serbian monastery, the same year of the devastating eruption of violence started by ethnic-Albanians in Kosovo, in the process destroying monasteries of the oldest Serbian land – Kosovo.

Kostunica also said that he will talk with the Hilandar brotherhood about continuation of the monastery’s reconstruction, and that he will do everything in his power to remove certain administrative, bureaucratic obstacles, alluding to the difficulties our construction workers are having in obtaining Greek visas.

The Serbian Prime Minister expressed satisfaction with the fact that the Hilandar Monastery is being rebuilt and that it looks much better today that in the ominous March 2004. He recalled that the Serbian governments has been setting aside €1 million a year for its reconstruction.

Author: Tanjug

“Reconstructing the Hilandar Monastery is like rebuilding Serbia in a vital and crucial moment”, stressed Kostunica, adding that he will talk with the clergy about the continuation of the support for the process of reconstruction and at the same time the ways of removing certain administrative and procedural difficulties.

Kostunica said that the motive for yesterday’s round of official talks in Athens was his wish to present to “Greek friends, such an important country and a leader in the region” Serbia’s position on the future status of Kosovo-Metohija expressed at the last UN Security Council meeting.

He pointed out that his Greek interlocutors fully supported the position of impermissibility of imposing solutions for Kosovo-Metohija. They added, on the other hand, that the solution must be reached in accordance to current international regulations and principles.

The Serbian delegation, in addition to the Prime Minister, consisting of Minister of International Economic Relations Milan Parivodic, Minister of Culture Dragan Kojadinovic, and Minister of Economy Predrag Bubalo, was welcomed in the Hilandar Monastery by its monks headed up by Epitropus Metodije.

Author: Tanjug

Father Metodije said to Serbian journalists that the reconstruction of the monastery must not interfere with usual life in the monastery. He expressed his satisfaction with the aid the state has provided for the Hilandar reconstruction, adding that the fact that this is the Prime Minister’s second visit to the monastery since the great fire means that he did not forget them.

Architect Mirko Kovacevic, appointed supervisor of the reconstruction process by the monastery, hinted at the possibility of a seven-year reconstruction process, pointing out that 5,500 square metres of usable space burned in the March 2004 fire.

Kovacevic said that the construction of objects outside the monastery to accommodate construction workers is finished, and added that the next step is the reconstruction of the monastery’s residence. The monastery itself dates back more than eight centuries and was founded by Saints Sava and Simeon.