Serbian PM speaks with visiting Ukrainian president

Prime Minister Ana Brnabic met on Tuesday in Belgrade with President of Ukraine Petar Poroshenko.

They discussed the further development of political dialogue, economic cooperation and overall bilateral relations.

Brnabic said that Serbia expects the continuation of institutional economic cooperation with Ukraine through the work of the joint Intergovernmental Commission for Trade, Economic and Scientific-Technical Cooperation, as well as Ukraine to propose a date for the next session of the Commission.

We are convinced that it is in the mutual interest to sign a bilateral free trade agreement, she said, adding that in the past two years a slight growth of the commodity exchange was observed in relation to the previous period of stagnation.

The Prime Minister stressed that in 2017 the trade exchange amounted to about EUR 316 million, whereas in the first four months of this year alone it was more than EUR 134 million.

Speaking about the areas where there is a possibility of cooperation, she listed agriculture, food and light industry, energy, as well as improvement of the tourist offer, while on the Ukrainian side there is a strong interest in establishing a direct flight line between Kiev and Belgrade during the whole year.

The prime minister expressed gratitude to Poroshenko for the principled support of his country regarding the non-recognition of the unilaterally proclaimed independence of Kosovo.

She expressed the expectation that Ukraine will continue to support Serbia's efforts to oppose Pristina's intentions of joining international organizations such as Interpol, UNESCO and others.

Brnabic informed her interlocutor about the European integration of Serbia, thanked him for the support that his country gives to Serbia on that road, and stressed that full membership in the EU is an...

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