Help from Montenegro was expected

BELGRADE - Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic thanked on Wednesday the government and people of Montenegro for their help during the catastrophic floods in Serbia last week.

Montenegro sent help on time and without hesitation, which reduced the scale of the disaster, Nikolic told a joint news conference after a meeting with Montenegrin President Filip Vujanovic in Belgrade.

The relations between the two countries are excellent, so the help from Montenegro was expected and accepted as "a brotherly helping hand," he said.

Serbia went through tough trials in the battle against the floods and now faces the challenge of repairs and expects help from the international community and all friends, he noted.

Serbia wants friendly relations with Montenegro, will always cooperate with it and the two countries will help each other in EU integration, he pointed out.

Governments will change, but the friendly relations between Serbia and Montenegro must not be undermined, even when it seems like some want to do so, Nikolic stated.

Serbia wishes happiness to all the Balkan countries, as well as those ties, especially economic ones, that used to bring them together and improve the life of the people, he said.
"This is not the time to close, but to open, especially for us who are small in the global sense. If we join together, we can do a lot more," he stressed.

Vujanovic said he had come to Serbia to once again express sympathy on behalf of his people for the tragic loss of life and huge damage caused by the floods in Serbia.

The disaster has revealed all the shortcomings in the infrastructure, he remarked, calling for improvements to the roads and railways connecting the two nations.