Refugee issue should be dealt with jointly

The Croatian ambassador to Serbia has declined to receive a protest note sent by the Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Croatian ambassador to Serbia has declined to receive a protest note sent by the Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Croatia considers its allegations about the “discriminatory nature of the measures, which could only be compared to those employed in the past, during the fascist Independent State of Croatia” an utterly offensive, inappropriate and unacceptable way to communicate with a neighbouring country.

The problem of the rising refugee wave that Croatia and Serbia are both faced with should be dealt with in the spirit of good-neighbourliness and European solidarity as well as through constructive cooperation in receiving the refugees at the Croatian-Serbian border. The situation can only be alleviated through coordinated efforts on both of our parts to reduce the pressure at our border.

As the EU heads of state and government concluded at yesterday’s meeting, there are no simple solutions to this crisis and this challenge can only be dealt with by working together in the spirit of solidarity and responsibility. Croatia will continue to strongly advocate appropriate assistance on part of the EU to the countries of the Western Balkans in managing the refugee routes, which was also one of the main messages at yesterday’s European Council meeting. 

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