Đurić: Relations between Serbia and the Netherlands are visibly progressing
"We had an exceptionally high-quality and successful dialogue with members of the Dutch parliament from various parties. There are those who are friendly inclined, and those who are quite skeptical about European integration in general, but in any case, we have a great story to tell about our country, which is making enormous efforts in institutional reforms, economic development, and everything else," Minister Đurić emphasized.
According to him, there were many facts of which our Dutch friends and hosts were not fully aware, and it was greatly beneficial for them to hear, providing an opportunity to respond to numerous questions posed directly by representatives of Serbian state organs.
The head of Serbian diplomacy highlighted that the conversation took place in an exceptionally good atmosphere, concluding that, following this visit and meetings with Dutch parliamentarians, officials, and businesspeople, relations between Serbia and the Netherlands are visibly progressing.
"This visit will not be the end; we will continue to develop economic, political, cultural, and other ties with the Kingdom of the Netherlands. There is a large number of our expatriates here; this is a country with immense scientific and technological potential. Tens of thousands of people in Serbia already work in Dutch companies, and some Serbian companies also operate successfully from here or here," the minister said.
Speaking about the meetings that marked the second day of the visit, Đurić also reflected on the meeting with Christophe Bernasconi, the Secretary-General of the Hague Conference, pointing out its significance for the international legal contractual status of Serbia.
"Few people in Serbia know exactly what the Hague Conference deals with, but it handles agreements in the field of international private law, and increasing Serbia's contractual base creates a better business environment and a better environment for economic cooperation of our country with other countries around the world," Đurić emphasized.
As he explained, among them are agreements that ensure companies can regulate legal relations among themselves according to the highest international standards.
"The discussion with the Secretary-General of the Hague Conference was significant also because of issues concerning Kosovo and Metohija. We believe that Priština should not be granted membership in such organizations under circumstances where the regime in Priština, namely the Kurti regime, endangers the human rights of Serbs and other non-Albanians in Kosovo and Metohija and takes steps backward in the dialogue each month," stated Minister Đurić.
The meetings in The Hague were also an opportunity, as he highlighted, to acquaint Dutch interlocutors with the situation of our people in Kosovo and Metohija.
He added that in yesterday's discussion with the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, Christoph Kamp, the focus was on respecting the rights of national communities in Serbia.
"Here, I particularly emphasized the efforts we in Serbia are investing and the pride we have in the diverse national communities living in our country. On the other hand, I again pointed out all that is happening in Kosovo and Metohija," said the Minister.
In the context of European integration, according to Minister Đurić, there was also discussion on how to accelerate European integration, adding that Dutch parliamentarians were interested in how to present to their constituents the support for further rapprochement of a country like Serbia, at the other end of Europe, to the European Union.
"This is a very beautiful and concrete topic for discussion. For example, if we talk about cybersecurity, which is a prominent issue here, or about the issue of illegal migrations, which is extremely important here, it is clear that Europe cannot be complete without Serbia, which plays a significant role in preventing illegal migrations. We stop more than 70 percent of illegal migrations to Europe via the Balkan route, although we do not constitute 70 percent of the Balkan territory," Đurić explained.
Serbia, as he added, has an efficient police force, security agencies, and agreements with Frontex, and in this way, we help ensure these regions are not overwhelmed by waves of illegal migration.
"This is one of many reasons why members of countries like the Netherlands should support Serbia's further rapprochement to the European Union. And the crucial, substantive, fundamental reasons also lie in the fact that Serbia is today the fastest-growing economy certainly in Southeast Europe, and it is very possible that this year, if we do not destroy ourselves with internal turmoil, we will also be the most successful economy in terms of growth in Europe," Minister Đurić emphasized.
Reflecting on the discussions related to economic cooperation, Đurić noted that investors and companies from the Netherlands are already performing very well in Serbia and have high praise for our country.
"We discussed how to strengthen Serbian-Dutch economic cooperation and I presented to our hosts a complex network of incentives that the Serbian government offers for innovative technologies and the startup sector in our country. I believe that tomorrow in Belgrade, some Dutch companies will have discussions with representatives of the Serbian government, because of today's talks. I also expect that we will have a visit from a Dutch business delegation in the coming period," Minister Đurić conveyed.