Speaker meets with Federation Council chairwoman

Speaker meets with Federation Council chairwoman

According to Tanjug, Matviyenko underlined that the visit of the Serbian parliament speaker to Moscow is an important impetus for the two countries' parliamentary cooperation.

Matviyenko said that the economic relations are on an upward trajectory and there is still much room for their further improvement, adding that further liberalization is being considered as part of the free trade regime and increase in investments.

"There are possibilities for the development of cooperation with Serbia in the field of energy despite the abandonment of the South Stream gas pipeline project," she said.

Gojkovic "agreed that there is room for improving the economic cooperation and stressed that the Serbian parliament will support the development of these relations."

She advocated the promotion of inter-parliamentary cooperation on the level of working bodies and friendship groups in the framework of the agreement on inter-parliamentary cooperation, said a statement from her office.

Gojkovic on Monday with Chairman of the State Duma Sergei Naryshkin, and then addressed the deputies at the Duma, Tanjug reported.

Russia's TASS agency said that Valentina Matviyenko on Tuesday thanked Serbia for its principled position and refusal to join the anti-Russian sanctions despite all the pressure from outside.

“We value Serbia’s principled position in respect of Russia. Despite the pressure exerted on Serbia, it has said definitely and clearly that it was not going to join sanctions against Russia. It is a principled position on the backdrop of the Russophobic campaign unfolding in Europe. It is an absolutely pragmatic position, since Serbia is interested in closer cooperation with Russia,” she said during the meeting with Gojkovic.

“Serbia has demonstrated itself as a reliable partner on the issue of the South Stream project. I think today we have all the possibilities and Russia is ready to develop relations with Serbia in the energy sphere. There are a lot of projects and proposals we plan to realize," she said.

“We value the position of the proud and independent Serbia, which has its own point of view,” Matviyenko stressed.