On 10 March 2011, at the National Assembly House, the Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia Prof. Dr Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic and OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Petros Efthymiou signed a Cooperation Agreement between the NARS and OSCE PA on the organisation of the 20th OSCE PA Annual Session in July in Belgrade, which, according to the NARS Speaker marked the beginning of “the most important parliamentary and political event in 2011”.

“Greatly honoured to have the gathering take place in Belgrade, Serbia wishes to confirm the principles it shares with the other OSCE members – democratic development, respect for human and minority rights, rule of law and prevention of conflicts on OSCE territory”, said Djukic-Dejanovic after the Agreement was signed.

Efthymiou stressed that the OSCE PA session being held in Belgrade is the result of “Serbia’s achievements” in strengthening democratic institutions and expressed his belief that the Belgrade session would be a success in both the number of participants and quality of work.

In the meeting preceding the signing, Djukic-Dejanovic and Efthymiou discussed the key technical details of the 20th OSCE PA session to be held from 6 to 10 July in Belgrade (Sava Center). The NARS Speaker said that an Organisation Committee for the event has been created, adding that so far delegations from 20 countries had confirmed their participation. Efthymiou specified that the Assembly’s topics would move in three directions. They shall cover political, military and security issues, economic issues, energy security and human rights and the rule of law. “The improvement and efficiency of the OSCE work will also be discussed”, said Efthymiou, adding that he expects the session to be a success.

Serbian Assembly Speaker Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic asked the OSCE President Petros Efthymiou that the report on the trafficking in human organs be made part of the debate on trafficking in human beings during the OSCE PA July session in Belgrade.