The Negotiating Team for Accession of the Republic of Serbia to the European Union has, in cooperation with the European Integration Office and with the support of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany through the German Agency for International Development Cooperation (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH), organised a conference at which the experiences on the process of accession to the European Union have been exchanged, and at which some of the former heads of the Negotiating Teams and negotiation participants from the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, as well as from the Western Balkans region, have spoken.
The meeting was opened by Tanja Miscevic, the Head of Negotiating Team for Accession of the Republic of Serbia to the EU, Oscar Benedict, Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia and Axel Dittmann, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to the Republic of Serbia. A large number of senior officials from the Republic of Serbia, primarily the members of the Negotiating Team for Accession of the Republic of Serbia to the EU participated at the event, along with the members of 35 negotiating groups, and the representatives of the Civil Sector.
In her introductory remarks, the Head of Negotiating Team for Accession of the Republic of Serbia to the EU stated that the European integration is an instrument of great and important changes in our society, and expressed her thanks to the German Government and the EU Delegation for their support and help in the process of Serbia's accession to the EU so far. Axel Dittmann, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to the Republic of Serbia, conveyed the position of his country on the full support to the European perspective of the Western Balkans, noting that this is the position of the EU. At the Conference "EU Accession Negotiations - New Context", Dittmann said that this commitment was unequivocally confirmed by the European Council, and, at the same time, expressed his satisfaction regarding the organisation of today's meeting, which was a good practical example of the said support to Serbia's European path.
Oscar Benedict, Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia, said today that the EU remains committed to its enlargement policy, and emphasised that the pace of Serbia's accession to the EU depends on the progress achieved in Chapters 23 and 24, and that it is essential for the citizens of the Republic of Serbia to know what the accession to the EU entails for them personally.
