Affected by a deep political crisis Serbia is again facing the issue whether to join East or West, to support Moscow and China or Brussels and Washington. The public usually perceives this dilemma in the form of emotion which comes down to the talk on whom do we prefer better and who loves us more. This shows that Serbia failed to cultivate the political elite that could discuss the important strategic issues for the country in a serious and rational manner and that could offer citizens a rational option.
Deception was and still is a very lucrative political discipline which easily incorporates emotional attitude of population towards certain nations, countries, or changes in international relations. Foreign factor is added so that uninformed voters could see that supporters of certain option are not alone and that they are backed up by some powerful country ready to protect us because we love it and it loves us.
In reality, outside the political fog, situation is quite different. This is best illustrated by the pragmatic “No” that came from Moscow as a reply to the suggestion that 50,000 Kosovo Serbs receives Russian citizenship. Love is love, citizenship is citizenship, but interests are interests and they, instead of emotions, make the foundation of international relations. Political leaders who seek support in Russia will not lose much in this way. They have been speaking emotions for quite a while, and people in love hardly break up even when they catch their partners in bed with another person.
Emotions are present in politics to the extent necessary for political parties and blocs. The fact that they exist and play an important role does not mean that the overwhelming majority is ready to act in accordance with them. On the contrary, researches show that population, along with the willingness to express emotions, also displays a high degree of pragmatism when it comes to serious matters of life and the future of every citizen.
Whether the entire country will act emotionally or pragmatically mostly depends on how loud and successful are those who advocate one option or the other. Therefore, the population of Serbia is not by definition inclined to mythical national issues. It is as it is, with all its virtues and faults arranged in a similar manner as in most other countries in the region. The elite is determining the direction and it should have clear goals and be honest and clear with the citizens.
Is the indecisiveness between East and West the historical fate of Serbia, are we making mistakes in the choice of our priorities, is it possible to change this and is there a clear way out acceptable for all? To what extent does the external factor affect the determination of voters and will the parties use the proximity to power centers abroad in the upcoming elections?
Vojin Dimitrijevic and Srdjan Bogosavljevic are trying to answer these and many other questions for the portal of Novi Magazin.