UN General Assembly
2018

Serbia is on the way to rethinking itself as a prosperous, dynamic, creative, innovative, open society within a united Europe that is whole, free and at peace. I am often asked — when others are leaving European Union (EU), when so many express doubts regarding the prospect of a united Europe — why would joining the EU be the principal strategic goal? I have often asked myself the same thing. In life, I believe that when we are not sure of the answer, we must go back to basics, clear our heads of the daily clutter, forget political misconceptions and spins, and think of basic values. That, I believe, is where we find our answers. The basic value of the European Union, much like the basic value of the United Nations, is peace. It is not the economy, nor trade, nor a bigger market. It is peace. All of the other things and much, much more came, and will always come, as a spill-over effect of peace.