US Ambassador Hill: There is only one path for Serbia - West and European Union

"Unlike in the past, when it was believed in Serbia that there was a third path, that Serbia is neither East nor West, that it is somehow special, that it goes its own way, now most Serbs think there is a right path and a wrong path and they want to choose the right path,” Hill told Politika daily.

As he said, Serbia must decide whether it wants to have a “self-sufficient army and buy weapons from different countries, or to join the collective defense.”

"Serbs should decide that, and I think they have decided that their future is in the West, and not in some undefined East. I'm saying all of this based on what I hear every day from people but also based on the statements by President of (Serbia Aleksandar) Vucic,” said Hill.

He noted that Ukraine and Kosovo are "very different situations" and called for not linking what happened in Kosovo in 1999 with what is happening in Ukraine today.

"When it comes to Kosovo and Serbia, they are neighboring countries. Serbs live in Kosovo and there are many things in Kosovo that are important to Serbia. Good neighbors must solve that. The right way is EU-mediated dialogue and negotiations in Brussels,” said Hill.

He also said he believes that all elements must be on the negotiating table and that it is not possible to say 'I want to talk about this but not talk about this', adding he has not yet seen the commitment of the two sides to that.

"If we talk about Euro-Atlantic integration, it is also an element on that negotiating table. When you negotiate, one side wants one thing, the other side wants another thing, but then you just have to talk about it. I am discouraged when I see one side wants one thing and rejects what the other side wants to be on the negotiating table,” said the ambassador.