Ladies and gentlemen,
It is my great pleasure to be here in Novi Sad with you today. Prime Minister Pajtić, State Secretary Belić, Rector Pejanović, Dr Hrvojević and I have just opened the new building of the Faculty of Sciences, Department of Mathematics and Physics.
Kosovo will host the ministerial conference of the six Western Balkan countries, “Western Balkans’ 6”, dedicated to concrete regional projects, with special emphasis on infrastructure investment. This event comes after the Conference of Western Balkan States, held in Berlin, organized by the German Chancellor, Mrs. Angela Merkel, with the aim of promoting economic cooperation between the countries of the region.
Christian Danielsson, Director General of DG European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations of the European Commission visited Serbia on 18-19 March.
Belgrade, 18 March 2015 – The European Investment Bank (EIB), the EU Bank, has signed two loans totalling EUR 80 million in Serbia with Société Generale Bank Serbia (SGRS) and Sogelease Serbia (SLRS) in support of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), Mid-Caps as well as infrastructure schemes promoted by local authorities. The loans are designed to assist Serbia in its efforts to integrate into the European Union (EU).
EU’s aid to Serbia for flood prevention is maybe even more important to prevent a catastrophe similar to last year’s devastating floods to occur in the future, David McAllister, rapporteur on Serbia, told the European Parliament.
Assessing the reform progress of Serbia, Kosovo, Montenegro and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in 2014, Parliament points in resolutions passed on Wednesday to continuing challenges with the rule of law, corruption, discrimination, the pace of structural reform and the polarisation of politics. It hails the resumption of high-level talks between Pristina and Belgrade and says their relations must be fully normalised.
Apart from the assistance in tackling consequences of floods, EU will support Serbia in preventing and disaster risk reduction, said Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia Michael Davenport at the presentation of National Disaster Risk Management Programme.
Following a technical meeting recently between Serbia and Kosovo, facilitated by the European Commission and EU Agencies, today’s political encounter is a proof of our commitment for further collaboration on this delicate matter.
Young people from around the world, aged 21-26, are invited to join the debate on the future of internal cooperation at the upcoming edition of European Development Days (EDD15), Europe’s premier forum on global cooperation and development, which will take place in Brussels on 3-4 June.
In the run-up to the 2015 edition of European Development Days (EDD15), Europe’s premier forum on global cooperation and development, the European Commission will launch a photo contest calling on young people, aged 15-25 around the world to share their vision on sustainable food and development.
