ZAGREB, September 12, 2019 - Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said after an audience with Pope Francis in the Vatican on Thursday that the role of the Holy See in talks on future relations between Serbs and Croats was very important, stressing that as Serbia's president he would like the pope to visit Serbia but that his visit was a matter to be decided by the Serb Orthodox Church.
"It is clear to everyone that we are divided by history and by the past, that we have completely opposite views of past events... I fear that if we fail to be responsible and continue to talk about the past, we will strengthen all the others and weaken ourselves," Vučić said, adding "We must respect one another more."
"The role of the Holy See in talks between Serbs and Croats is very important," Vučić told Serbian reporters after talks with Pope Francis, noting that one of the topics of the talks was the need to improve relations between Serbs and Croats.
He would not reveal more details about the talks or about the official positions of Zagreb and Belgrade.
Vučić said he also talked with the pope about the status of the Roman Catholic community in Serbia, which accounts for about 5.1% of the population, and particularly underlined the status of the Belgrade Archdiocese and the respect enjoyed by Belgrade Archbishop Stanislav Hočevar.
Vučić said the Vatican wanted a peaceful solution between Kosovo and Serbia and would maintain its position in that regard since the Holy See had not recognised Kosovo's independence.
Commenting on the possibility of the pope visiting Serbia, Vučić said: "I would love it if the Pope visited Serbia, but that is a matter for our church to decide".
Vučić conveyed to the pope greetings from the head of the Serb Orthodox Church, Patriarch Irinej, and noted that he would convey his to the Serb Orthodox dignitary.
More news about relations between Croatia and Serbia can be found in the Politics section.
