Three-finger salute (Serbian)
Encyclopedia
Salute
A salute is a gesture or other action used to display respect. Salutes are primarily associated with armed forces, but other organizations and civil people also use salutes.-Military salutes:...
expressing Serbian ethnic nationalism
Serbian nationalism
Serbian nationalism refers to the ethnic nationalism of Serbs. Originally arising in the context of the general rise of nationalism in the Balkans under Ottoman rule, under the influence of Serbian linguist Vuk Stefanović Karadžić and Ilija Garašanin....
, made by extending the thumb, index, and middle fingers of the right hand. It was popularized by Jovan Rašković
Jovan Raškovic
Jovan Rašković was an ethnic Serbian psychiatrist and politician from Croatia....
as a sign used by the Serbian side in the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
of the 1990s.
Origins
One popular theory on the origin of the salute is based on the way that Orthodox SerbsSerbian Orthodox Church
The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth in order of seniority after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia...
perform the Sign of the Cross
Sign of the cross
The Sign of the Cross , or crossing oneself, is a ritual hand motion made by members of many branches of Christianity, often accompanied by spoken or mental recitation of a trinitarian formula....
, with three extended fingers representing the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
. A saying often used by Serbs is: Nema krsta bez tri prsta (There is no cross without three fingers).
The gesture in its modern form is attributed to Vuk Drašković
Vuk Draškovic
Vuk Drašković , leader of the Serbian Renewal Movement, is a Serbian politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Yugoslavia and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of State Union of Serbia and Montenegro and Serbia.He graduated from the University of Belgrade's Law School in 1968...
, leader of the opposition Serbian Renewal Movement
Serbian Renewal Movement
The Serbian Renewal Movement is a political party in Serbia.It was founded in 1990.In 1997 a dissident group abandoned the party and formed New Serbia....
. In a 2007 interview, he explained that he first used it in 1990 at the founding meeting of the movement.
Drašković found inspiration in a painting by Paja Jovanović
Paja Jovanovic
Pavle "Paja" Jovanović was the most prominent Serbian Realist painter alongside Uroš Predić. He is considered one of Serbia's greatest academic painters. His most famous and recognizable paintings include Serbian Migrations, Crowning of Stefan Dušan, Takovo Uprising, Cockfighting, Decorating of...
depicting the Serbian prince Miloš Obrenović greeting Serb insurgents during the Takovo Uprising
Takovo Uprising
Takovo Uprising is a painting by Paja Jovanović , one of the greatest Serbian realist painters off all time. It represents the start of the Second Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Empire in Takovo, 1815...
of 1815. During the March 1991 street demonstrations
March 9, 1991 protest
March 9, 1991 protest refers to a mass rally on the streets of Belgrade that turned into a riot featuring vicious clashes between the protesters and police. It was organized by Vuk Drašković's Serbian Renewal Movement on March 9, 1991...
in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, the three fingers were massively used by Drašković's supporters, representing the three demands that the Serbian Renewal Movement had put before the government.
However there are other meanings of the salute and it is also used by some political opponents of the Serbian Renewal Movement.
Srđan Srećković, a vice president of the Serbian Renewal Movement, said in an interview to Kurir that it can also symbolize "one finger for St. Sava, the other finger for Njegoš, and the third finger for Karađorđe".
At the eve of the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
, the salute was popularized by Jovan Rašković
Jovan Raškovic
Jovan Rašković was an ethnic Serbian psychiatrist and politician from Croatia....
, leader of the Republic of Serbian Krajina
Republic of Serbian Krajina
The Republic of Serbian Krajina was a self-proclaimed Serb entity within Croatia. Established in 1991, it was not recognized internationally. It formally existed from 1991 to 1995, having been initiated a year earlier via smaller separatist regions. The name Krajina means "frontier"...
. His daughter Sanda said that he never gave explanation for using it.
Usage
The three-finger salute was widely used by unionists in MontenegroMontenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
during their rallies before the Montenegrin independence referendum
Montenegrin independence referendum, 2006
The Montenegrin independence referendum was a referendum on the independence of the Republic of Montenegro from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro that was held on 21 May 2006.The total turnout of the referendum was 86.5%...
.
The salute is also used by members and supporters of almost all Serbian political parties (excluding LDP and SPS
Socialist Party of Serbia
The Socialist Party of Serbia is officially a democratic socialist political party in Serbia. It is also widely recognized as a de facto Serbian nationalist party, though the party itself does not officially acknowledge this...
) on their rallies during election campaigns. It can be seen at all kinds of street demonstrations, notably the Kosovo is Serbia rally.
During the Yugoslav wars, three-finger salute was used by Serb nationalist, soldiers and paramilitary units.
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
, his party
Socialist Party of Serbia
The Socialist Party of Serbia is officially a democratic socialist political party in Serbia. It is also widely recognized as a de facto Serbian nationalist party, though the party itself does not officially acknowledge this...
comrades and supporters did not use the salute. It was instead used by demonstrators in the events leading to the ousting of Slobodan Milošević
Eurovision song contest winner, Marija Šerifović
Marija Šerifovic
Marija Šerifović is a singer from Serbia. She won the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 with the song "Molitva". Šerifović was born in Kragujevac, Socialist Republic of Serbia, Yugoslavia and is the daughter of Verica Šerifović, also a notable singer...
, while celebrating the maximum of 12 points that she received from Bosnian viewers displayed the three-finger salute. This caused controversy as some Bosnian viewers saw it as provocation, but Swedish Serbs called it ridiculous, saying the salute is nothing more than a modified V sign
V sign
The V sign is a hand gesture in which the index and middle fingers are raised and parted, while the other fingers are clenched. It has various meanings, depending on the cultural context and how it is presented...
.
Among Serb opponents in the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
– Croats
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
, Bosniaks
Bosniaks
The Bosniaks or Bosniacs are a South Slavic ethnic group, living mainly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a smaller minority also present in other lands of the Balkan Peninsula especially in Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia...
and Albanians
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
– the three-finger salute is usually perceived as provocation, especially when directed at them personally. In response, their forces used the V sign
V sign
The V sign is a hand gesture in which the index and middle fingers are raised and parted, while the other fingers are clenched. It has various meanings, depending on the cultural context and how it is presented...
as a victory/defiance sign during the war.
Rade Leskovac, president of the Party of Danube Serbs
Party of Danube Serbs
The Party of Danube Serbs is a Serb minority political party in Croatia. It was formed as the Serbian Radical Party of the Republic of Serbian Krajina by Rade Leskovac in the early 1990s...
, a Serbian minority party in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, caused a controversy in 2007 when election posters featuring him giving the three-fingered salute were posted around the city of Vukovar
Vukovar
Vukovar is a city in eastern Croatia, and the biggest river port in Croatia located at the confluence of the Vuka river and the Danube. Vukovar is the center of the Vukovar-Syrmia County...
.
Sports
The salute is often used by sport fans and players when celebrating sport victories. After winning the 1995 European basketball championshipEuroBasket 1995
EuroBasket 1995 final tournament stage was XXIX European basketball championship and was held in Athens, Greece from 21 June to 2 July, 1995. This European championship was the first one that saw the successful return of Lithuania national basketball team to the tournament, since its last triumph...
, the entire Yugoslav team displayed the three fingers.
Sasha Djordjevic says he flashed the three fingers "not to be provocative. Just: That's Serbia, that's us, that's me – nothing else. It's my pride. " During the last and decisive UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying match between Croatia
Croatia national football team
The Croatia national football team represents Croatia in international football. The team is controlled by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body for football in the country, and has been managed since 2006 by former player Slaven Bilić...
and FR Yugoslavia
Serbia national football team
The Serbia national football team represents Serbia in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of Serbia, the governing body for football in Serbia. Serbia's home ground is Stadion Crvena Zvezda in Belgrade and their last head coach was Vladimir Petrović...
, played at Stadion Maksimir in the Croatian capital, Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, on October 9, 1999, Zoran Mirković
Zoran Mirkovic
Zoran "Bata" Mirković is a former Serbian footballer.-Club career:Mirković made his first appearance for FK Rad during the 1990–91 season. But even before that he and his teammates won the Yugoslav title in the under-21 category, the biggest success this club ever had...
, after being sent off, flashed the three finger salute.
After Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia : Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
won the World Championship in water polo in the 2005, team captain Vladimir Vujasinović
Vladimir Vujasinovic
Vladimir Vujasinović is a Serbian water polo player who played on the bronze medal squad of FR Yugoslavia at the 2000 Summer Olympics, the silver medal squad of Serbia and Montenegro at the 2004 Summer Olympics, and numerous other titles...
stated "thank you for being there for us in hard times, you gave us the strength to go all the way and win the gold medal. I am proud of you, my country and all my people," and displayed the traditional three-finger Serbian salute. Mateja Kežman
Mateja Kežman
Mateja Kežman is a Serbian football striker who plays for FC BATE Borisov of the Belarusian Premier League....
flashed the three finger salute after he scored the goal, which brought Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia : Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
to 2006 World Cup, in the decisive qualification match
2006 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)
Listed below are the dates and results for the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for UEFA teams. A total of 51 teams took part, divided in 8 Groups - five groups of 6 teams each and three groups of 7 teams each - competing for 13 places in the World Cup...
against Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
in Belgrade.
Vlade Divac
Vlade Divac
Vlade Divac is a retired Yugoslav and Serbian professional basketball player who spent most of his career in the NBA. At , he played center and was known for his passing skills...
is also known to have often shown the three-finger salute after wins and scores. More recently, Serbian tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
player Novak Đoković
Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic is a Serbian professional tennis player who has been ranked world no. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals since 4 July 2011. He has won four Grand Slam singles titles: the 2008 and 2011 Australian Open, the 2011 Wimbledon Championships, and the 2011 US Open...
has shown the three-finger salute often after his victories.
Salute
A salute is a gesture or other action used to display respect. Salutes are primarily associated with armed forces, but other organizations and civil people also use salutes.-Military salutes:...
expressing Serbian ethnic nationalism
Serbian nationalism
Serbian nationalism refers to the ethnic nationalism of Serbs. Originally arising in the context of the general rise of nationalism in the Balkans under Ottoman rule, under the influence of Serbian linguist Vuk Stefanović Karadžić and Ilija Garašanin....
, made by extending the thumb, index, and middle fingers of the right hand. It was popularized by Jovan Rašković
Jovan Raškovic
Jovan Rašković was an ethnic Serbian psychiatrist and politician from Croatia....
as a sign used by the Serbian side in the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
of the 1990s.
Origins
One popular theory on the origin of the salute is based on the way that Orthodox SerbsSerbian Orthodox Church
The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth in order of seniority after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia...
perform the Sign of the Cross
Sign of the cross
The Sign of the Cross , or crossing oneself, is a ritual hand motion made by members of many branches of Christianity, often accompanied by spoken or mental recitation of a trinitarian formula....
, with three extended fingers representing the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
. A saying often used by Serbs is: Nema krsta bez tri prsta (There is no cross without three fingers).Hajdinjak, Marko. (2000) Yugoslavia - Dismantled and Plundered
1 THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL TRIBUNAL CASE NO. IT-94-1-T
The gesture in its modern form is attributed to Vuk Drašković
Vuk Draškovic
Vuk Drašković , leader of the Serbian Renewal Movement, is a Serbian politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Yugoslavia and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of State Union of Serbia and Montenegro and Serbia.He graduated from the University of Belgrade's Law School in 1968...
, leader of the opposition Serbian Renewal Movement
Serbian Renewal Movement
The Serbian Renewal Movement is a political party in Serbia.It was founded in 1990.In 1997 a dissident group abandoned the party and formed New Serbia....
. In a 2007 interview, he explained that he first used it in 1990 at the founding meeting of the movement.
Drašković found inspiration in a painting by Paja Jovanović
Paja Jovanovic
Pavle "Paja" Jovanović was the most prominent Serbian Realist painter alongside Uroš Predić. He is considered one of Serbia's greatest academic painters. His most famous and recognizable paintings include Serbian Migrations, Crowning of Stefan Dušan, Takovo Uprising, Cockfighting, Decorating of...
depicting the Serbian prince Miloš Obrenović greeting Serb insurgents during the Takovo Uprising
Takovo Uprising
Takovo Uprising is a painting by Paja Jovanović , one of the greatest Serbian realist painters off all time. It represents the start of the Second Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Empire in Takovo, 1815...
of 1815. During the March 1991 street demonstrations
March 9, 1991 protest
March 9, 1991 protest refers to a mass rally on the streets of Belgrade that turned into a riot featuring vicious clashes between the protesters and police. It was organized by Vuk Drašković's Serbian Renewal Movement on March 9, 1991...
in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, the three fingers were massively used by Drašković's supporters, representing the three demands that the Serbian Renewal Movement had put before the government.Tri Srbije?. B92 Editorial. 10 October 2002.
However there are other meanings of the salute and it is also used by some political opponents of the Serbian Renewal Movement.Ni supruga lidera SPO, Danica Drašković, nije bila ništa manje zatečena radikalskim preokretom.
Najpre je kroz osmeh konstatovala: "Neka, neka, uskoro će početi i da uzvikuju i "svi, svi, svi", pa dodala da "nema ništa protiv toga da i radikali mašu sa tri prsta". -- The wife of SPO's leader, Danica Drašković, was not less surprised by the Radical's turnaround (usage of salute). She firstly said: "That's alright, everybody will soon start shouting "all, all, all" and said that she "doesn't mind that the Radicals use three fingers salute". http://arhiva.kurir-info.rs/Arhiva/2006/novembar/11/V-04-11112006.shtml from Kurir
Kurir
Kurir is a high-circulation daily tabloid published in Belgrade. Its first issue appeared at the news stands on May 6, 2003.Kurirs tone is abrasive, direct and irreverent. It runs sensationalist stories, the other publications won't touch...
Srđan Srećković, a vice president of the Serbian Renewal Movement, said in an interview to Kurir that it can also symbolize "one finger for St. Sava, the other finger for Njegoš, and the third finger for Karađorđe".http://arhiva.kurir-info.rs/Arhiva/2006/novembar/11/V-04-11112006.shtml from Kurir
Kurir
Kurir is a high-circulation daily tabloid published in Belgrade. Its first issue appeared at the news stands on May 6, 2003.Kurirs tone is abrasive, direct and irreverent. It runs sensationalist stories, the other publications won't touch...
At the eve of the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
, the salute was popularized by Jovan Rašković
Jovan Raškovic
Jovan Rašković was an ethnic Serbian psychiatrist and politician from Croatia....
, leader of the Republic of Serbian Krajina
Republic of Serbian Krajina
The Republic of Serbian Krajina was a self-proclaimed Serb entity within Croatia. Established in 1991, it was not recognized internationally. It formally existed from 1991 to 1995, having been initiated a year earlier via smaller separatist regions. The name Krajina means "frontier"...
. His daughter Sanda said that he never gave explanation for using it.
Usage
The three-finger salute was widely used by unionists in MontenegroMontenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
during their rallies before the Montenegrin independence referendum
Montenegrin independence referendum, 2006
The Montenegrin independence referendum was a referendum on the independence of the Republic of Montenegro from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro that was held on 21 May 2006.The total turnout of the referendum was 86.5%...
.
The salute is also used by members and supporters of almost all Serbian political parties (excluding LDP and SPS
Socialist Party of Serbia
The Socialist Party of Serbia is officially a democratic socialist political party in Serbia. It is also widely recognized as a de facto Serbian nationalist party, though the party itself does not officially acknowledge this...
) on their rallies during election campaigns. It can be seen at all kinds of street demonstrations, notably the Kosovo is Serbia rally.
During the Yugoslav wars, three-finger salute was used by Serb nationalist, soldiers and paramilitary units.
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
, his party
Socialist Party of Serbia
The Socialist Party of Serbia is officially a democratic socialist political party in Serbia. It is also widely recognized as a de facto Serbian nationalist party, though the party itself does not officially acknowledge this...
comrades and supporters did not use the salute. It was instead used by demonstrators in the events leading to the ousting of Slobodan Milošević
Eurovision song contest winner, Marija Šerifović
Marija Šerifovic
Marija Šerifović is a singer from Serbia. She won the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 with the song "Molitva". Šerifović was born in Kragujevac, Socialist Republic of Serbia, Yugoslavia and is the daughter of Verica Šerifović, also a notable singer...
, while celebrating the maximum of 12 points that she received from Bosnian viewers displayed the three-finger salute. This caused controversy as some Bosnian viewers saw it as provocation,Pincom.info: Tajni znakovi Eurosonga: Kome je Marija podigla tri prsta?Georg Cederskog. "Schlagertävlingen hotar bli politiserad", Dagens Nyheter
Dagens Nyheter
is a daily newspaper in Sweden. It has the largest circulation of Swedish morning newspapers, followed by Göteborgs-Posten and Svenska Dagbladet, and is the only morning newspaper that is distributed to subscribers across the whole country. In 2009 DN had a circulation of 316,000, reaching 881...
13 May 2007. Retrieved 13 March 2011. but Swedish Serbs called it ridiculous, saying the salute is nothing more than a modified V sign
V sign
The V sign is a hand gesture in which the index and middle fingers are raised and parted, while the other fingers are clenched. It has various meanings, depending on the cultural context and how it is presented...
.Serbernas riksförbund i Sverige et al. "'Missförstå inte våra serbiska tre fingrar'", Aftonblade, 17 May 2007. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
Among Serb opponents in the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
– Croats
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
, Bosniaks
Bosniaks
The Bosniaks or Bosniacs are a South Slavic ethnic group, living mainly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a smaller minority also present in other lands of the Balkan Peninsula especially in Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia...
and Albanians
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
– the three-finger salute is usually perceived as provocation, especially when directed at them personally. In response, their forces used the V sign
V sign
The V sign is a hand gesture in which the index and middle fingers are raised and parted, while the other fingers are clenched. It has various meanings, depending on the cultural context and how it is presented...
as a victory/defiance sign during the war.
Rade Leskovac, president of the Party of Danube Serbs
Party of Danube Serbs
The Party of Danube Serbs is a Serb minority political party in Croatia. It was formed as the Serbian Radical Party of the Republic of Serbian Krajina by Rade Leskovac in the early 1990s...
, a Serbian minority party in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, caused a controversy in 2007 when election posters featuring him giving the three-fingered salute were posted around the city of Vukovar
Vukovar
Vukovar is a city in eastern Croatia, and the biggest river port in Croatia located at the confluence of the Vuka river and the Danube. Vukovar is the center of the Vukovar-Syrmia County...
.
Sports
The salute is often used by sport fans and players when celebrating sport victories. After winning the 1995 European basketball championshipEuroBasket 1995
EuroBasket 1995 final tournament stage was XXIX European basketball championship and was held in Athens, Greece from 21 June to 2 July, 1995. This European championship was the first one that saw the successful return of Lithuania national basketball team to the tournament, since its last triumph...
, the entire Yugoslav team displayed the three fingers.
Sasha Djordjevic says he flashed the three fingers "not to be provocative. Just: That's Serbia, that's us, that's me – nothing else. It's my pride. "Prisoners of War by Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
During the last and decisive UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying match between Croatia
Croatia national football team
The Croatia national football team represents Croatia in international football. The team is controlled by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body for football in the country, and has been managed since 2006 by former player Slaven Bilić...
and FR Yugoslavia
Serbia national football team
The Serbia national football team represents Serbia in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of Serbia, the governing body for football in Serbia. Serbia's home ground is Stadion Crvena Zvezda in Belgrade and their last head coach was Vladimir Petrović...
, played at Stadion Maksimir in the Croatian capital, Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, on October 9, 1999, Zoran Mirković
Zoran Mirkovic
Zoran "Bata" Mirković is a former Serbian footballer.-Club career:Mirković made his first appearance for FK Rad during the 1990–91 season. But even before that he and his teammates won the Yugoslav title in the under-21 category, the biggest success this club ever had...
, after being sent off, flashed the three finger salute.
After Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia : Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
won the World Championship in water polo in the 2005, team captain Vladimir Vujasinović
Vladimir Vujasinovic
Vladimir Vujasinović is a Serbian water polo player who played on the bronze medal squad of FR Yugoslavia at the 2000 Summer Olympics, the silver medal squad of Serbia and Montenegro at the 2004 Summer Olympics, and numerous other titles...
stated "thank you for being there for us in hard times, you gave us the strength to go all the way and win the gold medal. I am proud of you, my country and all my people," and displayed the traditional three-finger Serbian salute.Swimming-Serbia's water polo team get heroes' welcome by Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
on August 2nd, 2005 Mateja Kežman
Mateja Kežman
Mateja Kežman is a Serbian football striker who plays for FC BATE Borisov of the Belarusian Premier League....
flashed the three finger salute after he scored the goal, which brought Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia : Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
to 2006 World Cup, in the decisive qualification match
2006 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)
Listed below are the dates and results for the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for UEFA teams. A total of 51 teams took part, divided in 8 Groups - five groups of 6 teams each and three groups of 7 teams each - competing for 13 places in the World Cup...
against Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
in Belgrade.http://arhiva.kurir-info.rs/Arhiva/2005/oktobar/13/SP-05-13102005.shtml
Vlade Divac
Vlade Divac
Vlade Divac is a retired Yugoslav and Serbian professional basketball player who spent most of his career in the NBA. At , he played center and was known for his passing skills...
is also known to have often shown the three-finger salute after wins and scores. More recently, Serbian tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
player Novak Đoković
Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic is a Serbian professional tennis player who has been ranked world no. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals since 4 July 2011. He has won four Grand Slam singles titles: the 2008 and 2011 Australian Open, the 2011 Wimbledon Championships, and the 2011 US Open...
has shown the three-finger salute often after his victories.
Salute
A salute is a gesture or other action used to display respect. Salutes are primarily associated with armed forces, but other organizations and civil people also use salutes.-Military salutes:...
expressing Serbian ethnic nationalism
Serbian nationalism
Serbian nationalism refers to the ethnic nationalism of Serbs. Originally arising in the context of the general rise of nationalism in the Balkans under Ottoman rule, under the influence of Serbian linguist Vuk Stefanović Karadžić and Ilija Garašanin....
, made by extending the thumb, index, and middle fingers of the right hand. It was popularized by Jovan Rašković
Jovan Raškovic
Jovan Rašković was an ethnic Serbian psychiatrist and politician from Croatia....
as a sign used by the Serbian side in the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
of the 1990s.
Origins
One popular theory on the origin of the salute is based on the way that Orthodox SerbsSerbian Orthodox Church
The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth in order of seniority after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia...
perform the Sign of the Cross
Sign of the cross
The Sign of the Cross , or crossing oneself, is a ritual hand motion made by members of many branches of Christianity, often accompanied by spoken or mental recitation of a trinitarian formula....
, with three extended fingers representing the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
. A saying often used by Serbs is: Nema krsta bez tri prsta (There is no cross without three fingers).Hajdinjak, Marko. (2000) Yugoslavia - Dismantled and Plundered
1 THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL TRIBUNAL CASE NO. IT-94-1-T
The gesture in its modern form is attributed to Vuk Drašković
Vuk Draškovic
Vuk Drašković , leader of the Serbian Renewal Movement, is a Serbian politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Yugoslavia and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of State Union of Serbia and Montenegro and Serbia.He graduated from the University of Belgrade's Law School in 1968...
, leader of the opposition Serbian Renewal Movement
Serbian Renewal Movement
The Serbian Renewal Movement is a political party in Serbia.It was founded in 1990.In 1997 a dissident group abandoned the party and formed New Serbia....
. In a 2007 interview, he explained that he first used it in 1990 at the founding meeting of the movement.
Drašković found inspiration in a painting by Paja Jovanović
Paja Jovanovic
Pavle "Paja" Jovanović was the most prominent Serbian Realist painter alongside Uroš Predić. He is considered one of Serbia's greatest academic painters. His most famous and recognizable paintings include Serbian Migrations, Crowning of Stefan Dušan, Takovo Uprising, Cockfighting, Decorating of...
depicting the Serbian prince Miloš Obrenović greeting Serb insurgents during the Takovo Uprising
Takovo Uprising
Takovo Uprising is a painting by Paja Jovanović , one of the greatest Serbian realist painters off all time. It represents the start of the Second Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Empire in Takovo, 1815...
of 1815. During the March 1991 street demonstrations
March 9, 1991 protest
March 9, 1991 protest refers to a mass rally on the streets of Belgrade that turned into a riot featuring vicious clashes between the protesters and police. It was organized by Vuk Drašković's Serbian Renewal Movement on March 9, 1991...
in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, the three fingers were massively used by Drašković's supporters, representing the three demands that the Serbian Renewal Movement had put before the government.Tri Srbije?. B92 Editorial. 10 October 2002.
However there are other meanings of the salute and it is also used by some political opponents of the Serbian Renewal Movement.Ni supruga lidera SPO, Danica Drašković, nije bila ništa manje zatečena radikalskim preokretom.
Najpre je kroz osmeh konstatovala: "Neka, neka, uskoro će početi i da uzvikuju i "svi, svi, svi", pa dodala da "nema ništa protiv toga da i radikali mašu sa tri prsta". -- The wife of SPO's leader, Danica Drašković, was not less surprised by the Radical's turnaround (usage of salute). She firstly said: "That's alright, everybody will soon start shouting "all, all, all" and said that she "doesn't mind that the Radicals use three fingers salute". http://arhiva.kurir-info.rs/Arhiva/2006/novembar/11/V-04-11112006.shtml from Kurir
Kurir
Kurir is a high-circulation daily tabloid published in Belgrade. Its first issue appeared at the news stands on May 6, 2003.Kurirs tone is abrasive, direct and irreverent. It runs sensationalist stories, the other publications won't touch...
Srđan Srećković, a vice president of the Serbian Renewal Movement, said in an interview to Kurir that it can also symbolize "one finger for St. Sava, the other finger for Njegoš, and the third finger for Karađorđe".http://arhiva.kurir-info.rs/Arhiva/2006/novembar/11/V-04-11112006.shtml from Kurir
Kurir
Kurir is a high-circulation daily tabloid published in Belgrade. Its first issue appeared at the news stands on May 6, 2003.Kurirs tone is abrasive, direct and irreverent. It runs sensationalist stories, the other publications won't touch...
At the eve of the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
, the salute was popularized by Jovan Rašković
Jovan Raškovic
Jovan Rašković was an ethnic Serbian psychiatrist and politician from Croatia....
, leader of the Republic of Serbian Krajina
Republic of Serbian Krajina
The Republic of Serbian Krajina was a self-proclaimed Serb entity within Croatia. Established in 1991, it was not recognized internationally. It formally existed from 1991 to 1995, having been initiated a year earlier via smaller separatist regions. The name Krajina means "frontier"...
. His daughter Sanda said that he never gave explanation for using it.
Usage
The three-finger salute was widely used by unionists in MontenegroMontenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
during their rallies before the Montenegrin independence referendum
Montenegrin independence referendum, 2006
The Montenegrin independence referendum was a referendum on the independence of the Republic of Montenegro from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro that was held on 21 May 2006.The total turnout of the referendum was 86.5%...
.
The salute is also used by members and supporters of almost all Serbian political parties (excluding LDP and SPS
Socialist Party of Serbia
The Socialist Party of Serbia is officially a democratic socialist political party in Serbia. It is also widely recognized as a de facto Serbian nationalist party, though the party itself does not officially acknowledge this...
) on their rallies during election campaigns. It can be seen at all kinds of street demonstrations, notably the Kosovo is Serbia rally.
During the Yugoslav wars, three-finger salute was used by Serb nationalist, soldiers and paramilitary units.
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
, his party
Socialist Party of Serbia
The Socialist Party of Serbia is officially a democratic socialist political party in Serbia. It is also widely recognized as a de facto Serbian nationalist party, though the party itself does not officially acknowledge this...
comrades and supporters did not use the salute. It was instead used by demonstrators in the events leading to the ousting of Slobodan Milošević
Eurovision song contest winner, Marija Šerifović
Marija Šerifovic
Marija Šerifović is a singer from Serbia. She won the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 with the song "Molitva". Šerifović was born in Kragujevac, Socialist Republic of Serbia, Yugoslavia and is the daughter of Verica Šerifović, also a notable singer...
, while celebrating the maximum of 12 points that she received from Bosnian viewers displayed the three-finger salute. This caused controversy as some Bosnian viewers saw it as provocation,Pincom.info: Tajni znakovi Eurosonga: Kome je Marija podigla tri prsta?Georg Cederskog. "Schlagertävlingen hotar bli politiserad", Dagens Nyheter
Dagens Nyheter
is a daily newspaper in Sweden. It has the largest circulation of Swedish morning newspapers, followed by Göteborgs-Posten and Svenska Dagbladet, and is the only morning newspaper that is distributed to subscribers across the whole country. In 2009 DN had a circulation of 316,000, reaching 881...
13 May 2007. Retrieved 13 March 2011. but Swedish Serbs called it ridiculous, saying the salute is nothing more than a modified V sign
V sign
The V sign is a hand gesture in which the index and middle fingers are raised and parted, while the other fingers are clenched. It has various meanings, depending on the cultural context and how it is presented...
.Serbernas riksförbund i Sverige et al. "'Missförstå inte våra serbiska tre fingrar'", Aftonblade, 17 May 2007. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
Among Serb opponents in the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
– Croats
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
, Bosniaks
Bosniaks
The Bosniaks or Bosniacs are a South Slavic ethnic group, living mainly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a smaller minority also present in other lands of the Balkan Peninsula especially in Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia...
and Albanians
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
– the three-finger salute is usually perceived as provocation, especially when directed at them personally. In response, their forces used the V sign
V sign
The V sign is a hand gesture in which the index and middle fingers are raised and parted, while the other fingers are clenched. It has various meanings, depending on the cultural context and how it is presented...
as a victory/defiance sign during the war.
Rade Leskovac, president of the Party of Danube Serbs
Party of Danube Serbs
The Party of Danube Serbs is a Serb minority political party in Croatia. It was formed as the Serbian Radical Party of the Republic of Serbian Krajina by Rade Leskovac in the early 1990s...
, a Serbian minority party in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, caused a controversy in 2007 when election posters featuring him giving the three-fingered salute were posted around the city of Vukovar
Vukovar
Vukovar is a city in eastern Croatia, and the biggest river port in Croatia located at the confluence of the Vuka river and the Danube. Vukovar is the center of the Vukovar-Syrmia County...
.
Sports
The salute is often used by sport fans and players when celebrating sport victories. After winning the 1995 European basketball championshipEuroBasket 1995
EuroBasket 1995 final tournament stage was XXIX European basketball championship and was held in Athens, Greece from 21 June to 2 July, 1995. This European championship was the first one that saw the successful return of Lithuania national basketball team to the tournament, since its last triumph...
, the entire Yugoslav team displayed the three fingers.
Sasha Djordjevic says he flashed the three fingers "not to be provocative. Just: That's Serbia, that's us, that's me – nothing else. It's my pride. "Prisoners of War by Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
During the last and decisive UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying match between Croatia
Croatia national football team
The Croatia national football team represents Croatia in international football. The team is controlled by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body for football in the country, and has been managed since 2006 by former player Slaven Bilić...
and FR Yugoslavia
Serbia national football team
The Serbia national football team represents Serbia in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of Serbia, the governing body for football in Serbia. Serbia's home ground is Stadion Crvena Zvezda in Belgrade and their last head coach was Vladimir Petrović...
, played at Stadion Maksimir in the Croatian capital, Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, on October 9, 1999, Zoran Mirković
Zoran Mirkovic
Zoran "Bata" Mirković is a former Serbian footballer.-Club career:Mirković made his first appearance for FK Rad during the 1990–91 season. But even before that he and his teammates won the Yugoslav title in the under-21 category, the biggest success this club ever had...
, after being sent off, flashed the three finger salute.
After Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia : Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
won the World Championship in water polo in the 2005, team captain Vladimir Vujasinović
Vladimir Vujasinovic
Vladimir Vujasinović is a Serbian water polo player who played on the bronze medal squad of FR Yugoslavia at the 2000 Summer Olympics, the silver medal squad of Serbia and Montenegro at the 2004 Summer Olympics, and numerous other titles...
stated "thank you for being there for us in hard times, you gave us the strength to go all the way and win the gold medal. I am proud of you, my country and all my people," and displayed the traditional three-finger Serbian salute.Swimming-Serbia's water polo team get heroes' welcome by Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
on August 2nd, 2005 Mateja Kežman
Mateja Kežman
Mateja Kežman is a Serbian football striker who plays for FC BATE Borisov of the Belarusian Premier League....
flashed the three finger salute after he scored the goal, which brought Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia : Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
to 2006 World Cup, in the decisive qualification match
2006 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)
Listed below are the dates and results for the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for UEFA teams. A total of 51 teams took part, divided in 8 Groups - five groups of 6 teams each and three groups of 7 teams each - competing for 13 places in the World Cup...
against Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
in Belgrade.http://arhiva.kurir-info.rs/Arhiva/2005/oktobar/13/SP-05-13102005.shtml
Vlade Divac
Vlade Divac
Vlade Divac is a retired Yugoslav and Serbian professional basketball player who spent most of his career in the NBA. At , he played center and was known for his passing skills...
is also known to have often shown the three-finger salute after wins and scores. More recently, Serbian tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
player Novak Đoković
Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic is a Serbian professional tennis player who has been ranked world no. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals since 4 July 2011. He has won four Grand Slam singles titles: the 2008 and 2011 Australian Open, the 2011 Wimbledon Championships, and the 2011 US Open...
has shown the three-finger salute often after his victories.
During the 2008 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony
2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony
The 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest. It began at 8:00 pm China Standard Time on August 8, 2008, as 8 is considered to be a lucky number. The number 8 is associated with prosperity and confidence in Chinese culture...
, Serbian president
President of Serbia
The President of Serbia is the head of state of Serbia. Presently serving as the head of state is Boris Tadić. He was elected with a narrow majority of 50.31% in the 2008 Serbian presidential elections.-Authority, legal and constitutional rights:...
Boris Tadić
Boris Tadic
Boris Tadić is the President of Serbia and leader of the Democratic Party. He was elected to a five-year term on 27 June 2004, and was sworn into office on 11 July. He was re-elected for a de facto second five-year term on 3 February 2008 and was sworn in on 15 February...
and Serbian Foreign Minister
Foreign minister
A Minister of Foreign Affairs, or foreign minister, is a cabinet minister who helps form the foreign policy of a sovereign state. The foreign minister is often regarded as the most senior ministerial position below that of the head of government . It is often granted to the deputy prime minister in...
Vuk Jeremić
Vuk Jeremic
Vuk Jeremić is a Serbian politician and the current Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Government of Serbia. He was sworn in on May 15, 2007 and reelected on July 7, 2008.-Education:Jeremić was born in Belgrade in 1975 to Miško Jeremić and Sena Buljubašić...
saluted the Serbian Olympic Team
Serbia at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Serbia competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, People's Republic of China. The country returned under the name Serbia after 96 years, previously competing under the names Yugoslavia , Independent Olympic Participants , Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro .The flag on the opening ceremony...
with three fingers.
On November 9, 2008, Standard de Liège striker Milan Jovanović
Milan Jovanovic (footballer born 1981)
Milan Jovanović is a Serbian footballer who plays for Anderlecht and the Serbia national team.-Early life:...
used the three-finger salute after winning the match and scoring a goal against Germinal Beerschot. The GB-supporters chanted "Kosovo Kosovo" during the match to intimidate Jovanović. After the match Jovanović showed the three-finger salute to the GB supporters. In an interview after the match he said that he was grateful because the GB-supporters motivated him.
Before the start of the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
The qualifying competition for UEFA Euro 2012 is a series of parallel association football competitions held over 2010 and 2011 to decide the qualifiers for UEFA Euro 2012, to be held in Poland and Ukraine...
football match between Serbia and Italy held in Genoa on 12 October 2010, the Serbian national football team displayed the three-finger salute to their disorderly supporters. The game was eventually abandoned six minutes after it had begun due to the disturbances caused by a violent group of Serbian football hooligans inside the stadium.PoliticaOggi, Resterà lo spettacolo disgustoso dei giocatori serbi che vanno sotto la curva ad applaudire i loro fan mostrando il tre, simbolo della Grande Serbia, 12 October 2010, retrieved 15-10-10