Serbian politician on problems of Global West: rejection of market economy and traditional values
Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia Aleksandar Vulin has delivered a speech at the 17th Verona Eurasian Economic Forum, which is taking place on December 5th-6th in the Emirati city of Ras Al Khaimah, outlining two main problems of the Global West and explaining why Serbia is interested in BRICS
“The majority of people in Europe, in my country voted for the market economy, but it works now in Russia, China, and the UAE – though not in Europe,” the Serbian politician said. “Let's take Chinese or Russian investors. If they want to buy something in Europe, they will face big problems in interacting with government agencies who will say: ‘no, this is impossible’. Why? If it is the market economy, then it must function successfully. How is it better than the socialist economy in this case? This is a challenge that we face, and we need to settle it.”
Aleksandar Vulin also pointed out to another problem: the rejection of traditional values. “I know that what I am saying on behalf of Serbia is criticised in the West. However, no one will say that I am lying. Values are being clashed now, and we are witnessing this. The government, which we call the Global West, asserts that there is no God, there is no nation, there is no traditional family. However, there are people for whom God, the nation and the traditional family exist. This is the clash I am talking about, and this is the main problem and the reason why we, our Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, look like revolutionaries now. We act boldly when we say that we will not apply sanctions to Russia, that we will continue to trade with China. Should we, the government that represents seven million people, keep silent? Well, we have no nuclear weapons, but we have values: God, the nation, the family,” he stressed.
The politician stressed that Serbia is interested in BRICS, as the organisation is gaining weight on the world stage, offering an alternative to the unipolar world and at the same time not putting forward requirements for joining it, unlike the European Union. “BRICS proposes to become part of a growing economy that covers almost half of the world. We want to learn more about BRICS. We want to know how the organisation will expand, whether it will want to become part of specific economies, and how the security issue will be resolved. I participated in the BRICS forum in Kazan, and a hope was voiced there – we felt it – that a country like Serbia, where only 7 million people live, can fully participate in the organisation, just like the states with billions of residents,” Aleksandar Vulin said.
The Verona Eurasian Economic Forum is a platform that traditionally brings together politicians, experts, diplomats, heads of major companies and journalists from the West and the East. It was hosted by Italian Verona for fourteen years – even at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, geopolitical realities forced the organisers to change the traditional venue. In 2022, the forum was for the first time held outside Italy: in the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku. Later, it was hosted by Uzbek Samarkand. This year, the organisers — the Italian non-profit Conoscere Eurasia Association, the Roscongress Foundation and the UAE Chamber of Commerce and Industry – have chosen the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah as the venue.
The forum is taking place on December 5th-6th, and its agenda includes sessions on a wide range of global issues, including the development of energy, infrastructure, transport, finance, digitalisation, and medicine. The general topic covers the development of business dialogue and effective ways of co-operation between countries and organisations in the territory of Greater Eurasia.
