Vučić Accuses N1 of Acting Against Serbian Interests
Serbian President Reacts Sharply to N1 Article on 'Oluja' Crimes, Stating the Outlet Was Never Serbian and Demands Serbs Apologize for Being Killed.
Serbian President Reacts Sharply to N1 Article on 'Oluja' Crimes, Stating the Outlet Was Never Serbian and Demands Serbs Apologize for Being Killed.
On the occasion of the 31st anniversary of the military-police operation 'Oluja', Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić sharply criticized the media outlet N1, accusing it of directly acting against the interests of the Serbian people. Vučić made these remarks during his stay in Republika Srpska, where he will attend a commemoration for the victims and displaced in Mrkonjić Grad.
In a statement to TV Informer, Vučić commented on an N1 article claiming that the crimes committed during 'Oluja' were the responsibility of all parties and that neither Belgrade nor Zagreb was interested in prosecuting them. "That is direct action against the interests of the Serbian people from the very beginning. A fake is always worse than the original," Vučić said.
The Serbian President asserted that those who "served in Croatian media to spread their propaganda" did so in an even more brutal manner. "They demanded that we apologize for being killed. They expelled hundreds of thousands of people and killed," he emphasized.
In his address, Vučić also mentioned the role of the then-American ambassador, whom he said "climbed onto a tank to show who was the daddy of the operation." He also spoke of "crystal nights" in cities and claimed that the "cream of the Serbian people" was killed, leaving behind a "fake elite ready to serve the Croatian elite." As an example, he cited General Uzelac, calling him "a worse Ustasha than the worst Croats."
He added that it is important for Serbia to have peace and good relations with Croatia, but not in the way envisioned in Zagreb. "That they dictate, and we dance and sing as they tell us. And that we must listen and serve their interests. We have our own interests," he stated.
Journalist Đorđe Vlajić from N1 Serbia assessed that 31 years after the 'Oluja' operation, the war story continues, but in a different way, through the confrontation of narratives. The Croatian side marks the event as a victory, while the Serbian side speaks of sacrifice and suffering. Vlajić believes that President Vučić, given the pre-election period in Serbia, is intensifying this narrative and trying to capitalize on it to homogenize his voter base on the issue of Serbian victimhood in Croatia.
According to N1 Serbia data, during the 'Oluja' operation from August 4 to 7, 1995, more than 200,000 Serbs were expelled from the Republic of Serbian Krajina.
