Serbian exports to EU grow 70 percent

Serbian exports to EU grow 70 percent

BELGRADE -- Serbian exports to the EU increased by more than 70 pct from 2010 to 2014, since the start of the implementation of the Stabilization and Accession Agreement.

The previous Interim Trade Agreement between Serbia and the EU marked the start of liberalization of trade, according to a release issued after a meeting of the Stabilization and Association Council (SA Council) on Thursday.

According to the Serbian government's European Integration Office, participants in the meeting emphasized that the EU would continue to support Serbia in the EU accession process, observing that since 2007, it had approved nearly 1.7 billion from its funds to support development of all segments of Serbian society.

The meeting focused a lot on recovery from last year's flooding, for which the EU has already allocated EUR 102 million and should approve additional EUR 60 million in the months to come.

Since 2000, it was pointed out, the EU had been by far the largest donor to Serbia, its donations accounting for 75 percent of the total non-refundable aid that Serbia had received since then.

The meeting also discussed Serbia's progress in implementing the political and economic criteria for accession, reforms in the area of the rule law and judiciary and the SAA.

The SA Council, composed of representatives of the Serbian government and the European Commission and EU member states, plays an important role in ensuring the continuity of the Stabilization and Accession Process (SAP) and a proper implementation of the obligations set out by the SAA, and it also represents an important forum for assessing overall progress made by Serbia in the EU accession process.

The meeting...