Serbian Minister Bratina apologizes for remark that Ukraine must "pay with territory for crimes"
Serbia’s Minister of Information and Telecommunications, Boris Bratina, apologized to Ukraine for his statement claiming that Ukrainians, like Croats, had allegedly "paid with territory" for their "crimes."
Serbia’s Ministry of Information and Telecommunications said this, Censor.NET reports.
Bratina issues a public apology
The ministry said Bratina is publicly apologizing for an error made on December 17, 2025, regarding a statement aired on Informer TV, in which it was said that "Croatia, like Ukraine, must pay with territory."
"We are aware that this statement caused inconvenience and misunderstandings regarding relations between two friendly countries and the official policy of the Government of the Republic of Serbia," the ministry said.
Official says he supports Ukraine’s territorial integrity
The ministry said Bratina’s statement was "misinterpreted" and "concerned exclusively a much earlier historical period," adding that the minister supports Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, which it said is Serbia’s official policy.
"Accordingly, Minister Bratina takes full responsibility for the situation that occurred and apologizes to everyone offended by the above statement, while the Ministry of Information and Telecommunications remains committed to transparent, responsible and professional work in the public interest," it added.
- Earlier, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry commented on Bratina’s statement claiming Ukrainians had "paid with territories" for their "crimes."
- "Like Ukrainians, they (Croats – ed.) must pay for it with territory. There is no other punishment. Of course, no one intends to kill Croats just because they are Croats. That’s nonsense. But Croatia needs to be punished somehow for its terrible role in World War I, and especially World War II, and even more so since the early 1990s," the Serbian official said, without clarifying what he meant in Ukraine’s context.
