Romanian prime minister visits Serbia

Romanian prime minister visits Serbia

BELGRADE -- Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta on Thursday morning began his visit to Serbia with a meeting with Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić.

Vučić greeted his Romanian counterpart with full state and military honors in front of the Palace Serbia. After the talks between the prime ministers, a plenary meeting of the delegations of the two governments will be held.

Later, the prime ministers will address the media. Vučić and Ponta will also together travel to the town of Bor in eastern Serbia, where they will meet with representatives of the Association of Romanians in Serbia.

Ponta will have a separate meeting with Serbian President Tomislav Nikolić.

He will also meet with representatives of the Romanian community in the eastern Serbian region of Timok, according to the Romanian government.

A statement also points out that Romania "concretely supports Serbia in the process of joining the European Union," adding that Ponta's trip "confirms a joint commitment to intensify political dialogue and to consolidate bilateral relations."

The talks in Belgrade will, as stated, focus primarily on projects of cooperation in the economic field, but also in the field of internal affairs, cross-border cooperation, environment and tourism.

Romanian and Serbian officials will talk about improving dialogue between ministries, cooperation within the Danube strategy, the Romanian community in Serbia and coordination of various forms of regional cooperation.

They will also discuss "the situation in the eastern neighborhood,"" and the latest developments in the Western Balkans.