DS MPs: PACE vote was in Serbia's interest

DS MPs: PACE vote was in Serbia's interest

BELGRADE -- Nataša Vučković says she and another DS official voted in favor of "the (PACE) resolution on Ukraine" because they thought it was "in the interest of Serbia."

Vučković is one of seven Serbian delegates - members of the country's outgoing parliament - to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).

Last week, they all abstained from voting on a proposed resolution on the situation in Ukraine, but the next day three of them, Vučković included, voted in favor of another document that suspended Russia's voting rights until the end of the year.

Vučković told a news conference in Belgrade on Monday that she fellow DS MP Vesna Marjanović "thought it was in the interest of Serbia."

"Anything that supports the preservation of territorial integrity is in the interest of Serbia," said she.

This official of the opposition Democrats (DS) added that the party's representatives voted against the strongly worded amendments to the resolution.

"Our position was pro-Serb, but not anti-Russian," said Vučković.

She confirmed that DS Foreign Policy Committee chair Dušan Spasojević resigned in protest over the manner in which they voted, and expressed her regret that "it happened without an agreement."

Vučković and Marjanović also "denied that they voted in favor of removing Russian representatives from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe."

"It is not true that we voted to remove the Russian colleagues because we believe that the presence of Russia and their work is very important for the Council of Europe," said Vučković.