Political consultations held between Serbia and Ukraine

10. Sep 2021.
Bilateral political consultations between Serbia and Ukraine were held today in Kiev.

The meeting discussed the overall relations between the two countries, the prospects for cooperation and the development of economic relations.

The Serbian delegation was led by the State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nemanja Starović, and the Ukrainian delegation was led by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vasyl Bodnar.

The Serbian side emphasized the importance of holding bilateral consultations with Ukraine and informed the Ukrainian side about Serbia's successes in the field of economic reforms, success in the fight against the corona virus pandemic, as well as Serbia's foreign policy priorities, EU accession process and Serbia's experiences on that plan.

Special attention was paid to the role of the Ukrainian and Serbian minorities in both countries in strengthening ties between the two nations, as well as the development of educational and cultural cooperation and student exchange.

Starović pointed out that he hoped that the Ukrainian side would participate in the upcoming celebration of the 60th anniversary of the first summit of the Non-Aligned Movement on 11 and 12 October at a high level.

The Ukrainian side informed about the foreign policy priorities of Ukraine, the experiences of Ukraine in the process of vaccination against the corona virus, as well as about the interest of the Ukrainian side in the very successful vaccination process in Serbia.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Vasyl Bodnar, emphasized the importance of Serbia for Ukraine in the region of Southeast Europe and the excellent position of the Ukrainian minority in Serbia. On that occasion, he emphasized that the two countries can strengthen ties in many areas, such as educational and scientific cooperation and European integration, and that Ukraine needs Serbia's help in that process with its valuable experience in EU membership negotiations.

Bodnar also expressed hope that the visa-free regime with Serbia will soon be expanded and that the citizens of both countries will be able to stay for up to 90 days on the territory of the other country without a visa.