He said that hate, prejudices and lack of tolerance lead nowhere.
POBJEDA: Croatia made a monument for Miro Barišić, which Montenegro did not look kindly upon. Can this situation influence the relationship of two countries?
-It can and it will, I can only hope not in the long-term. I have already said this, but we cannot close our eyes to the acts of this man before he came to die defending Croatia. What he did was terrorism. Making a monument for such a man, with two ministers present, sends a bad message, and not only to Montenegro but to EU as well. The monument rises doubts about the true nature of Croatian politics. I hope that after the elections in September, this matter gets resolved and better relations with Montenegro ensue.
POBJEDA: What is your opinion on relations between countries in the region? Parliament of Kosovo did not ratify the Agreement on demarcation with Montenegro. Could there be problems there?
-There are open matters between all the countries in the region. The key is in how you approach these matters – aggressively or productively. There need to be negotiations that make the result a compromise where neither side feels like a loser. In general, I am not pleased with the situation in the region. I am actually worried – relations between Croatia and Serbia demonstrate their imprisonment in the past. Unfortunately, this has been going on for years. Lighting the fire of hate again, intolerance, that leads nowhere. We must be realistic about the past and look into the present and future. We have wasted too much time. Let us try and make up for what was lost by having stable relations in the region. I am not a nostalgic person, but I know what is interest. The interest of each country in the region is to cooperate and have good relations with neighbors. No one can convince me otherwise.
POBJEDA: We are living in a challenging age, are their appropriate response for the horrors of terrorism?
– There are, of course there are. But terrorism cannot be stopped only by looking at its symptoms. You must remove the cause. We must work to eliminate further regrutation of terrorists. It is a fight against fundamentalism in faith, using faith politically. We must improve the life standard in countries from where terrorist come, and give up on imposing political systems to other countries regardless of their needs. It will be a long process and we must know that some of our basic human rights will be limited. I warned of this development in London in 2001. Unfortunately, I was met with disbelief, and I wish I was not. I wish I was wrong.
POBJEDA: Have EU and NATO lost some of their appeal after Brexit and terror in Europe?
– Good question. EU and NATO are not what they used to be. They need to be redefined. It is not only about the terrorism. There are no organizations that can guarantee total safety in this case, although it sounds cruel. EU needs to return to its roots that helped found the community after WWII. The Union needs less nationalism, more community. If the European identity has not been defined by now, that does not mean that it is impossible to define. Without it, the nationalism prevails. EU becomes less attractive, but that does not mean that it should be given up on. NATO needs to revert to its basic role, protection. It is bad that this Alliance is turning into a world policeman protecting certain politics and interests. As a guarantee of safety for the members, NATO is needed and welcome.
POBJEDA: Do you think Brexit will slow down the expansion, or will EU and NATO let Montenegro and other aspirants join soon?
-I believe Brexit will slow this process down. Montenegro has good chances to be integrated in the near future, but I could not predict when and how. I believe that all the countries in the region should find their place in EU, but they must meet condition and criteria required.
POBJEDA: The world seems to have lost course. We are destroying natural environment and each other. Is there a way out?
-It is a million dollar question. There are many reasons to ask this, but I can not give a definite response. I can only repeat – we need to go back to the international relations that were in force after the ending of WWII. We need to go back to international law, United Nations, World Organization. There needs to be more responsibility for acts, especially in politics where capital dictates environment protection. I spoke of this in 2009 in United Nations, inviting the creation of a concept of new world order. Unfortunately, here we are. The perspective is not good. We need to come to our senses as soon as possible.
