East and West Clash in a Proxy Conflict Over Serbia, President Vucic Says
By Aleksandar Vasovic
BELGRADE (Reuters) - Serbia is the stage for a proxy war between East and West, President Aleksandar Vucic said on Monday, as Belgrade seeks to maintain a delicate balancing act between its ambition to join the European Union and its ties with Russia and China.
Vucic's remarks to Reuters come a day after protesters at a rally in Belgrade against a gay pride march waved Russian flags and carried posters of Russia's President Vladimir Putin.
I cannot say that it (the protest) was a proxy attack because there were many ordinary people there...but whether there is a proxy conflict in Serbia...there is one, no doubt about that, East and West, he said, speaking to Reuters at his office in Belgrade.
Serbia is a candidate to join the European Union, its single biggest trade partner and investor. It is militarily neutral but maintains ties with NATO and has purchased weapons from its member states.
However the Balkan nation is almost entirely dependent on Russian gas and has also bought weapons from Russia. China is a major investor, mainly in mining and infrastructure.
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