India supports Serbia's territorial integrity

"India will support Serbia on the question of the protection of its sovereignty in all international forums. India's stand is well known to other countries, and its position in international relations today is such that the opinion of India is respected", said Swarup, whose country on January 26 marks the anniversary of Republic Day - the date when the Constitution of independent India came into force in 1950.

In an interview to the Tanjug news agency, Swarup said that India "consistently believes the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries should be respected in full."

India also gave its support to United Nations (UN) Security Council Resolution 1244, and it backed Serbia's recent initiative at the UN General Assembly for obtaining the stand of the International Court of Justice in The Hague on the issue of the legality of the indepedence of Kosovo, the ambassador pointed out.

"The Indian government believes that the problem of Kosovo should have been resolved peacefully and that a mutually acceptable solution should have been found through dialogue", he said, adding that "the principle of self-determination which is being quoted by certain parties was in fact relevant at the time of the liberation from colonialism, but not today."