The meeting was hosted by the Russian Ambassador to Serbia, H.E. Alexander Chepurin, and National Assembly Deputy Speaker Dr Nenad Popovic, who is also the Head of the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Russia.
Ambassador Chepurin was pleased to hear about the establishment of the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Russia at the National Assembly. “The establishment of the Group is very important for the improvement of cooperation between the two countries and I am sure it will contribute to the realisation of Serbia’s objective needs”, stressed Chepurin. He expressed his readiness to support the work of the Parliamentary Friendship Group proposing two topical meetings in the upcoming period to discuss how to improve the economic and cultural cooperation between Serbia and Russia.
National Assembly Speaker Nebojsa Stefanovic, who attended the meeting between the members of the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Russia and the Russian Ambassador, pointed out the need for closer interparliamentary cooperation between the two countries, not only among their respective MPs, but between the two parliaments’ support services as well. “I am sure that this cooperation would result in the adoption of better quality laws and elimination of barriers in the cooperation between the two economies”, said Stefanovic. He emphasised that Russian investment into Serbia is welcome, especially in the spheres of energy and infrastructure, stressing that this should give “new impulse to the two countries’ economic cooperation”.
The Head of the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Russia, National Assembly Deputy Speaker Dr Nenad Popovic stressed that, even though it has no executive authority, the Friendship Group will use its great moral authority and social influence to be the engine of cooperation between the two countries. “We will use our initiatives to spur the Serbian and Russian state authorities, economies, cultural and scientific institutions, as well as local self-governments of to cooperate”, state Popovic. He again thanked the Russian Federation for its sincere and principled support of Serbia’s efforts to maintain its territorial integrity and sovereignty in Kosovo-Metohija.
The Parliamentary Friendship Group with Russia with its 56 members is the largest parliamentary friendship group at the National Assembly.