The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia, Vuk Jeremic, paid a working visit to the Russian Federation on February 20.  

During the talks with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Sergey Lavrov, both sides emphasized the high level of Russian-Serbian relations possessing potential for their further dynamic development in the spirit of strategic partnership.

The interlocutors positively evaluated progress made in carrying out the bilateral summit accords reached in the framework of the Serbian President’s visit to Moscow on December 24, 2008. They stressed the importance of ongoingly promoting joint energy projects, as envisaged by the Russian-Serbian intergovernmental oil and gas cooperation agreement of January 25, 2008, involving the construction in Serbia of a South Stream Gas Pipeline section and the Banatski Dvor underground gas storage facility and the modernization and bringing of the company Serbian Oil Industry (NIS), of which Russia’s Gazprom Neft is the largest stakeholder, to leading positions in the Balkan region.

In discussing international and regional problems, the ministers paid special attention to the coordination of efforts to ensure a just solution to the status of Kosovo, based on the norms of international law. The necessity was underscored of facilitating the consideration of a request by the UN General Assembly for an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on whether Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence conforms to international law. Some other problems relating to the current situation in the Balkans also were examined.  

The sides exchanged views on bolstering security and cooperation in Europe in terms of the prospects for concluding a comprehensive Euro-Atlantic Security Treaty.  

Sergey Lavrov and Vuk Jeremic signed an Agreement between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Republic of Serbia on Conditions of Mutual Travel of Citizens of the Two Countries, envisaging possibility of a visa-free entry and stay on the territory of the other state for up to 30 days.

Jeremic also met Georgy Poltavchenko, Plenipotentiary Envoy of the President of the Russian Federation to the Central Federal District.