Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić admitted his country accidentally backed a U.N. resolution condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine and blamed exhaustion for the blunder.
"I believe that Serbia made a mistake today. I apologize to the citizens of Serbia for that, and I take the blame for that because I was probably tired and overwhelmed," Vučić said Monday.
Serbia had been expected to abstain from the vote.
The UN General Assembly passed the resolution Monday, officially designating Russia as the aggressor in the 3-year-long war, and demanded a full withdrawal of its troops. The vote tally: 93 in favor, 18 abstentions—including the U.S.—and a striking shift from Serbia, which backed the resolution despite its close ties to Moscow.
"I didn't have time to deal with this (issue) enough, maybe I'm too tired, maybe I have too many things (to deal with)... I don't think we should pander to any power, neither Russians nor Americans. I think it was in the interest of the state of Serbia. Unfortunately, it didn't happen," Vučić said, according to RTS.
Despite his long-standing refusals to sanction Russia, Vučić has called Ukraine a "friendly country" and previously said Crimea and Donbas belong to Ukraine. A simple voting mistake, he admitted, could cost him "favor or political points in the EU."
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