The National Assembly Speaker welcomed the new Ambassador, emphasising the excellent relations between the two countries and his readiness to continue working on strengthening the friendly relations between Serbia and France, primarily by intensifying the cooperation between the two parliaments.

National Assembly Speaker Ivica Dacic informed Ambassador Cochard about the National Assembly’s activities and plans for the coming period, reminding him that yesterday, after the National Assembly had passed the Act to amend the Constitution, he had called a referendum for 16 January 2022. He also informed his guest that tomorrow, 2 December 2021, the National Assembly would consider the European Commission’s Progress Report on Serbia. At the Ambassador’s interest, the National Assembly Speaker also briefed him on the implementation of the measures agreed on in the inter-party dialogue.

Ambassador Cochard agreed that more work needs to be done to strengthen parliamentary cooperation between Serbia and France, as well as the cooperation within La Francophonie. He said that France is following very closely and fully supports the reform processes in Serbia.

The officials agreed that an exchange of visits of parliament speakers would contribute to the strengthening of parliamentary cooperation and with it, bilateral relations as well.