Wendy Morton, Minister for the European Neighborhood and the Americas at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the United Kingdom, was in Belgrade, where she met with high Serbian state officials.

During the meeting with Morton, Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia Ana Brnabić expressed her belief that Serbia and the United Kingdom would continue to build strategic relations and that the trade agreement between the two countries would make a step forward in future economic cooperation.

Brnabić thanked the British government, which supported the reform process in Serbia, and expressed confidence that the conditions would be met for British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to visit Serbia next year.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia, Nikola Selaković, pointed out that Serbia was interested in deepening bilateral relations with the United Kingdom, as well as that there was a lot of potential for the relations between the two countries to strengthen both politically and economically.

In a conversation with Morton, the Head of the Serbian diplomacy underlined that preserving stability in the region and intensifying cooperation between the Western Balkan countries was of key interest for Serbia, emphasizing the importance of the “mini Schengen” initiative, launched by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, which would make the region more competitive to invest and provide economic and political benefits.

Foreign Minister Selaković also said that the new Government of Serbia remained on the pro-European path and thanked the United Kingdom for the support it provided to Serbia’s European integration.

Minister of Health Zlatibor Lončar and Minister Morton discussed the possibilities of improving cooperation between the two countries, especially in terms of preserving public health and fighting the coronavirus, while special attention was paid to the upcoming immunization, as well as challenges in terms of transport, distribution and application of vaccines.

During the conversation between Minister of Justice Maja Popović and Minister Morton, it was stated that the Government of the United Kingdom provided great support to Serbia in the implementation of reforms, and that it was the largest donor regarding the field of e-government.

The Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, Petar Petković, talked with the British Minister about the latest political and security situation in Kosovo and Metohija, as well as about the position of the Serbian people in our southern province.

Petković emphasized that Belgrade was ready at all times to continue negotiations with Priština, and that it would remain consistently committed to dialogue, as the only possible means for peaceful resolution of existing misunderstandings and creation of permanent security stabilization in the region.

Minister Morton, who was in Belgrade from 1st to 3rd December, assessed that quality relations between Serbia and neighboring countries were essential to the future of the region. She also said that she was looking forward to continued bilateral cooperation on common priorities and challenges, including the priority UN Climate Change Conference, to be hosted by the United Kingdom in 2021.