Serbia's institutions to remain in Kosovo

The country "will not give up on its institutions in that territory", the minister was quoted as saying.

Bogdanovic said that "messages and demands" for Serbia to abolish the so-called "parallel institutions" serving Serbs in Kosovo were "absolutely and utterly unacceptable", and that the state would continue to perform its function and role in Kosovo.

He went on to say that "at this point it's a thankless task to speak about whether Serbia will continue with the same decision even if insisting on parallel institutions blocked Serbia's European path".
"We are completely dedicated to fulfill all EU criteria, but this issue concerns our statehood, our Constitution and our laws," Bogdanovic was quoted as saying.

He further noted that it was "completely wrong" to refer to the Serbian institutions as parallel, since they were formed in democratic elections by the people's free will, and added that the illegitimate institutions of Pristina could be referred to as parallel.

"It is precisely thanks to their own institutions that the Serb population in Kosovo  remained there and survived. That fact shows in the best way possible that our institutions in Kosovo are a real and essential necessity of the Serb people and their survival," he concluded.