Serbia and France to strengthen cooperation

BELGRADE - Serbian Minister without portfolio in charge of European integration Jadranka Joksimovic and State Secretary for European Affairs of France Harlem Desir pointed to the importance of the two countries' friendly ties and stated that cooperation on various levels will intensify in the time to come.

After the Saturday meeting, Joksimovic stated at a joint news conference that France is one of Serbia's most important partners on its EU path.

France is already giving substantial support to Serbia's negotiating groups both in terms of technical expertise and through advisory functions, she said.

Speaking about reforms, Joksimovic said that a number of laws should be adopted by the end of July that will change the investment and overall economic climate in the country.

“After the adoption of the laws and the beginning of their implementation, we expect a wider economic diplomatic offensive to be launched which will focus on attracting investments from the EU and other countries,” Joksimovic said.

She expressed gratitude to France for all it has done to help Serbia after the recent floods and recalled that Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic and French President Francois Hollande have launched the initiative for staging the international donor conference.

Desir said that active efforts are being invested in the organisation of the donor conference which will gather over 50 countries and international organisations and mobilise international cooperation and would also make room for building a joint future, on top of the assistance provided to the flood-hit population.

Desir expressed satisfaction over the forthcoming visit of Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic to France, especially...