The Diplomat
The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, held yesterday at the Moncloa Palace his first bilateral meeting with the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, before whom he defended a solution to the Kosovo conflict “based on dialogue” and conveyed Spain’s support for his country’s candidacy to join the EU.
“Our bilateral relations are excellent, but we must work hard to deepen them, not only in the political field, but also to promote our commercial, defense or cultural exchanges,” said Sánchez after the meeting, which is part of the round of contacts that the President of the Government has been maintaining in recent months with the leaders of the region. On February 9, the head of the Executive received the President of the Tripartite Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Željko Komšić, to whom he showed Spain’s support for the territorial integrity of his country and defended the roadmap set by the European Commission for its future accession to the EU.
During yesterday’s meeting, the Prime Minister stressed Spain’s interest in intensifying its regional cooperation in the Western Balkans and in favor of reconciliation and collaboration between neighboring countries and assured, in this sense, that “Spain advocates a solution” for Kosovo “based on the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, and we want to be proactive in supporting it”. He also expressed his support for the work being carried out by the Office of the EU High Representative, Josep Borrell.
Likewise, Pedro Sánchez reiterated before Vučić Spain’s support for Serbia, a candidate for EU accession since 2012, to continue advancing in the priorities set by the European Commission. “Serbia, as it did with its recent constitutional reform, must continue to show its commitment to reform in fields such as the rule of law or the environment,” he said. “It can count on our support and companionship on that path,” he added.
The Serbian president was also received yesterday by King Philip VI at the Zarzuela Palace, where he was entertained with a lunch in his honor. The meeting was attended by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares; the Spanish Ambassador to Serbia, Raúl Bartolomé Molina; and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia, Nikola Selaković, among others. Precisely, Albares received yesterday his Serbian counterpart, with whom he underlined “the harmony of the two countries in international politics” and analyzed ways to “raise trade exchanges and investments”, as reported by the Ministry.
