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Sergey Lavrov: "Not all Balkan nations able to resist NATO’s pressure"

13 September 2019 10:29 (UTC +04:00)

Certain Balkan nations fall under NATO’s influence against the will of the majority of citizens, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with a newspaper, APA reports citing TASS.

"As for the attempts to inveigle all Balkan states into NATO, Moscow's negative attitude to those destructive efforts is widely known. In this regard, we welcome the responsible and sovereign line of Serbia to maintain military neutrality. Unfortunately, not many its neighbors are able to resist the external pressure and, against the will of the majority of citizens, are involved in the North Atlantic alliance’s orbit with its pretended security assurances," he said.

Lavrov emphasized that Belgrade remains Moscow’s leading partner in the region, though simultaneously Moscow is open for gradual development of relations with all Balkan states concerned.