Chairperson Djurovic and Minister Bakradze spoke in favour of strengthening parliamentary cooperation, especially at the level of parliamentary friendship groups and parliamentary delegations in international institutions, specifically the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.

Chairperson Djurovic said she regretted the fact that Georgia still did not have an embassy in Serbia, but added that she expects the situation to be remedied in the near future. She briefed Minister Bakradze on the activities of the Foreign Affairs Committee as regards parliamentary diplomacy and the Euro-integration process, which is Serbia’s foreign policy priority. Djurovic also said that the National Assembly had reached a consensus on European integration, though the citizens feel the process is going very slowly.

“We insist that more chapters than just Chapter 35 be opened in the negotiation process so that the reform processes, which are the very essence of Euro-integration, do not remain in the shadow of the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue”, stressed Djurovic.

Djurovic restated that Serbia is committed to EU accession, has a clear stance that it does not want to join NATO and remains a military neutral country.

Chairperson Djurovic thanked Georgia for its support of Serbia’s territorial integrity as regards the Kosovo-Metohija issue, hoping that it would remain firm in this position during the UNESCO vote.

She emphasised the importance of regional cooperation and parliamentary initiatives which promote better relations between the countries in the region such as cooperation between relevant committees and their joint ventures in international organisations. She also promised that the National Assembly would soon set up a PFG with Georgia.

Minister Bakradze informed the Chairperson of the Foreign Affairs Committee about Georgia’s European integration process, reaffirming its readiness to improve bilateral and parliamentary cooperation with Serbia.

“European integration is a demanding process in which the entire social environment undergoes substantial change through reforms, with the accompanying task of maintaining the citizens’ positive attitude to the EU. Our challenges are very similar to Serbia’s”, concluded Bakradze.

He added that he would personally advocate better cooperation between his country’s parliamentary delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the National Assembly’s delegation, which he believed would be greatly aided by cooperation between the parliamentary friendship groups in the Serbian and Georgian parliaments.