Serbian and Belgian PMs talk bilateral ties, Kosovo, EU bid

Serbian and Belgian PMs talk bilateral ties, Kosovo, EU bid

At a joint press conference after the meeting, Brnabic expressed her gratitude to the Michel for his visit and readiness to hear and understand our logics and what is happening in the region as well as what we did in the path of our European integration.

The prime minister emphasized regional cooperation as an important area, and also pointed to the importance of the long-term normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina.

Brnabic and Michel agreed to organize the arrival of Belgian businesspeople in Serbia as part of the economic cooperation of the two countries, the government announced.

The Serbian prime minister pointed out that the economic cooperation between Serbia and Belgium is modest, and that last year was just over EUR 540 million, and underlined that the economy is an area in which there is great potential for future cooperation.

She also pointed to an increasing number of Belgian tourists coming to Serbia, noting that this is also important for the cooperation of the two countries.

In 2017, the number of Belgian tourists in Serbia increased by 38.5 percent in relation to 2016, and only in the first two months this year, the number increased by as much as 93 percent compared to last year, the prime minister pointed out.

This is a trend that talks about potentials, because there is no better cooperation than the one that the citizens themselves make. I hope that on the waves of your visit to Serbia, but also on the waves of an increasing number of tourists, we will achieve better economic cooperation and a stronger friendship between Belgium and Serbia, she said.

Michel confirmed that there is room for further promotion of economic cooperation between Serbia and Belgium.

With a lot of enthusiasm, we accepted the suggestion to organize seminars of various companies with the Chamber of Commerce, in order to identify the potential for cooperation and investments, in order to create new jobs and strengthen the economy in Serbia, said the prime minister of Belgium.