Ambassador in disguise, idea borrowed from Bulgarian and African diplomats – Politika

Jelek, folk costumes and sandals were part of the outstanding performance of the new Serbian ambassador to Angola Milos Perisic, for which he was able to get the idea from the Bulgarian ambassador, who also appeared in India in traditional costume, from colleagues from African countries, including Angola or colleagues. from the Middle East, where he previously served as Charge d’Affaires at the Serbian Embassy.

The Serbian Ambassador to Angola, Miloš Perišić, attracted the attention of the national and world public by appearing at the presentation of his credentials to the President of Angola, Joao Lawrence, wearing traditional dress and sandals.

Social networks do not stop buzzing about his performance, some criticize him, some support him, and his appearance did not go unnoticed.

However, Perisic is not the first diplomat from the Balkans to “think” of presenting his country in this way; something similar did in early 2019 the Bulgarian ambassador Eleonora Dimitrova in India, where she also appeared in the traditional dress of her country when she met an Indian. officials.

On that occasion, the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained that Dimitrova wanted to show the rich tradition of his country in this way, as well as that the protocol allowed him the idea.

“This is one of the non-verbal instruments of diplomacy that we can use,” Dimitrova said, as reported by world media.

It is not known if Perišić also consulted the Serbian Foreign Ministry when choosing the clothes. So far, our SME has not responded on this occasion.

Certainly, his Angolan colleagues welcome his performance, as it is common for African diplomats to promote their tradition and traditional costumes during official visits to other countries. This is also confirmed by our interlocutor Zivadin Jovanovic, former diplomat and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the FRY.

– I received comments from personal friends from Angola to welcome this gesture and that they like it very much. This is not unusual for African countries, especially during the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, they came to us so capable. I also saw diplomats from Asian countries, the Middle East, with their traditional clothes – emphasizes Jovanović.

He adds that it is certainly better for our ambassador to present himself in the motives of his country, than as “Milan St. Protic when he went to Washington in cowboy boots trying to imitate some of his culture,” Jovanovic emphasized.

Milan St. Protić, as ambassador, was known and commented on in the national public precisely for those cowboy boots, and he was criticized for the idea of ​​consecrating the embassy premises in accordance with Orthodox tradition.

On the other hand, Vesna Pesic, who was Serbian ambassador to Mexico, does not recall meeting colleagues dressed in her suits during her diplomatic service. More important than what he trained, says Pesic for our newspaper, is whether the ambassador has skills.

– We do not know who this man is and when the SNS government sends them all to ambassadorial posts. Does he have any competition or maybe he came from the village, so he wears a costume? Pesic wonders.

However, we know from Perišić that prior to his duty in Angola, he was the Charge d’Affaires of the Serbian Embassy in the United Arab Emirates, and prior to that he served in Baghdad. The ICJ colleagues have only words of praise for him and it is valid for someone who respects his customs, as well as the countries he went to.

During his service in the Emirates, he was able to see his officers in traditional clothing and get an idea for such a performance from there. However, during his service in the United Arab Emirates, he did not wear the national costume, or at least those photos did not reach the public.

Related texts: