Serbia–Czech Republic roundtable held: Vučić reveals why Serbia is a good place for investment PHOTO/VIDEO

At the same time, Vučić highlighted as one of Serbia’s advantages the country’s ability to always provide support to companies, saying that this gives additional value and an advantage to the Serbian investment market.

"That is why the contact between the first deputy prime ministers, Karel Havlíček and Siniša Mali, is also important, and we agreed today that if any problems arise anywhere, they can react immediately, so that Czech companies here are satisfied, and so that our agreements, mutual obligations and responsibilities are fully respected," the president said.

According to Vučić, the state is always able to help companies when they face problems.

"It is true that there are challenges, sometimes with permits for your construction companies, and we are working and making efforts to overcome them, just as we are working to resolve many other issues when companies encounter difficulties. We always try to help as much as possible," he emphasized.

Vučić said it was an honor for Serbia to do business with successful Czech companies.

"There are a total of 245 companies operating in our country with majority Czech capital. Since 2010, investments have exceeded 640 million euros, with the largest investments coming in the last two years," Vučić added.

Vučić also said he had requested that the Joint Committee for Economic Cooperation between the two countries be elevated to a ministerial level. He said the next meeting of the committee should take place in February or March next year in Belgrade, shortly before the start of the international specialized exhibition EXPO 2027.

"I believe that for the Czech Republic, which is an industrial leader in the production of machinery, electrical equipment, energy technologies, medical equipment, the chemical industry and other modern production systems, we can be a reliable partner in this part of the world, particularly in the development of modern industry, innovation, the digital economy and new technologies," Vučić said.

Vučić emphasized that it is important for domestic companies to have the opportunity to learn from Czech companies, noting that the two countries are achieving increasingly successful military-technical cooperation.

"I believe that this cooperation will be further improved and that we will be able to expand it, regardless of the fact that the Czech Republic is a NATO member, while we are a militarily neutral country," he said.

Vučić also added that he was pleased that the Czech prime minister would visit the EXPO construction site in Surčin that day.

"I am happy that you will see everything we are doing, how much we are investing in Serbia’s development, and I believe you will be very satisfied," the Serbian president said.

Čadež: "50 companies at the forum, Czech Republic is an important trade partner of Serbia"

President of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce Marko Čadež said today at the opening of the roundtable "Serbia–Czech Republic: Business Dialogue and New Opportunities for Economic Cooperation", held at the Palace of Serbia, that 50 Czech and Serbian companies from all key sectors had gathered at the forum, with the largest number coming from the metal and electrical engineering industries, including the defense, aerospace, and automotive sectors.

He added that companies from the chemical industry, rubber industry, IT sector, agriculture, and telecommunications were also present.

"In our delegation, I would like to take this opportunity to point out that, besides the significant names from the defense industry that are with us, we also have major systems such as Elektroprivreda Srbije and Telekom Srbija, as well as companies from the chemical industry, including Beohemija, which is partly Czech-owned," Čadež said at the opening of the roundtable.

He added that the Czech Republic is an important trade partner for Serbia and a very significant export market.

"Over the past 10 years, our trade has increased fourfold. Czech business representatives are joined here today by my esteemed colleague Jan Rafaj, President of the Confederation of Industry of the Czech Republic, with whom I had a useful meeting even before this gathering about how our two business associations can provide stronger support to our companies. We are already preparing a return visit by the Serbian business community later this year," he said.

The roundtable brought together representatives of Serbian and Czech companies from various economic sectors, including the metal and chemical industries, construction, transport and logistics, information and communication technologies (ICT), food processing, and banking. The aim was to improve economic cooperation, establish new business contacts, and discuss opportunities for joint investments and new projects.