I believe that we are all, dear friends, greatly privileged to have gathered today at the first Serbia-EU Forum where we shall exchange opinions, hear messages, experiences and instructions which will, in addition to all the other deliberations of the esteemed participants of the forum ready to share their thoughts and knowledge, help us understand the challenges we face. As in all societies which have gone down or are still treading the road Serbia treads – the road to a thorough transformation of the system with the depth characterising a change in ideology, as well as a practical aspect which means touching the life of everyone – the organisation of a gathering such as this one is invaluable, which is why we owe the organisers of the Forum a debt of gratitude.

In previous years, the role of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia in the sphere of activities aimed at EU integration, has evolved along with the evolution of the perception of the National Assembly’s role, as well as its real capacities and results of its work – a development which could in its entirety be considered an overcoming of a serious crisis. We have shortened the distance from an institution blocking the process – an unpleasant estimate no matter whether the reasons causing it were of a formal or material nature, to a partner - a home where dialogue is developed reaching its height when the meaning of the term begins to live in the institution which is its metaphor.

The current convocation of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia passed a Law on the National Assembly and new Rules of Procedure which it then managed to adapt to the best European practice as regards independent state authorities, organisations and bodies which shall be underlined by an international conference on the organisation of which we are cooperating with the UNDP, UNHCR and the Ombudsman’s office. The National Assembly turned all of the recommendations of the European Commission into real life – such as passing a Law amending and modifying the Law on the Election of Deputies (which, without disregarding the importance of political parties, put the citizens into the centre of political life) resulting from an initiative of the MPs themselves, although we must not disregard the importance of the support of state administration; but I also refer to the introduction of the practice of public hearings and the fact that with the help of the Government we came to an understanding that the urgency of passing laws should revert back from the level of common practice to the frequency characterising it as an exception. And finally, we have fulfilled 98% of our obligations from the national plan of integration.

The policy aimed primarily at Serbia’s integration into the EU is in the purview of the Government of the Republic of Serbia. The mandate to pursue this policy was given by the National Assembly and from that moment our role is to do all in our power and within our competence to fulfill our share of the joint task to the best of our abilities. That is the National Assembly’s mission in the state project called EU accession. I am sure that this forum will give new quality to everyone present and help the National Assembly to realise the upcoming expectations which will be exceedingly important for our future work.