Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dačić said on Thursday he supports President Aleksandar Vučić’s planned visit to Moscow for a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of victory over fascism, arguing Serbia has a rightful place in commemorating the anti-fascist struggle.
“Serbia must be part of that anti-fascist legacy. The Serbian people made huge sacrifices in both world wars,” Dačić told TV Prva, adding that any responsible leader should take part in events marking the end of World War Two.
His comments come as Western leaders largely boycott the Moscow parade amid Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Dačić criticized the move, calling it “shameful.”
“Europe and the world are marking 80 years since the defeat of Hitler by boycotting the parade in Moscow. That’s disgraceful. It seems many have forgotten who we fought against and the evil the Nazi regime caused,” he said.
Dačić also referenced Croatia’s WWII Ustaše regime, accusing it of continuing to fight for Nazi Germany even after Hitler’s death, and suggested that Ukraine, too, should commemorate the May 9 anniversary due to the suffering it endured during the Nazi occupation.
“I think [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelenskiy should organize a parade as well. Ukraine suffered terribly under Nazi Germany,” he said. “And when Germany invaded Ukraine back then, Western countries didn’t go to war to defend it.”
Dačić said he would attend Victory Day events in Republika Srpska, the Serb entity in Bosnia, on Friday.
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