Minister of European Integration Jadranka Joksimović has spoken today with Austrian Ambassador to Serbia Nikolaus Lutterotti about Serbia’s accession to the EU and about issues important for bilateral and regional cooperation.
Joksimović has, above all, conveyed her condolences to the citizens and the Government of Austria regarding the recent terrorist attacks in Vienna, expressing Serbia’s high level of solidarity with Austrian citizens in the difficult times that have befallen them.
The Ambassador has expressed gratitude for all the messages and activities through which the Serbian citizens and state leadership demonstrated solidarity.
As regards the continuation of the European integration process, Joksimović has expressed her expectation that the Intergovernmental Conference will be held by the end of the year, in accordance with the new negotiation methodology.
She has added that Serbia’s progress and EU’s expectations would be analysed at the Conference, where Serbia would present to the member states its reform plans, primarily in the area of the rule of law, as well as regarding economic progress and sustainable development.
Furthermore, she has emphasised that it would be extremely important for Serbia to be introduced with the way of the application of the new methodology, under which negotiations will no longer be conducted by individual chapters but by clusters, so that it could better prepare for the accession process in 2021.
Ambassador Lutterotti has congratulated Minister Joksimović on her reelection, delivering her the letter of congratulations from Karoline Edtstadler, the Federal Minister for the EU and Constitution.
He has stressed that Austria supports a credible enlargement policy and promotes the European perspective of the Western Balkans, along with meeting all established criteria in the accession process, particularly the rule of law and economic criteria.
The Ambassador believes that Serbia will continue to implement the initiated reforms in a more intensified pace, particularly in segments that are key in the accession process.
The interlocutors have also mentioned the extremely successful bilateral cooperation, both at the political and economic level, as well as development assistance, which is successfully implemented through the Austrian Development Agency and used for the realisation of projects financed from EU funds and international financial institutions.
Source: Tanjug
