The Head of the National Assembly’s Parliamentary Friendship Group with Austria Zivota Starcevic met today with the Austrian Ambassador to Serbia Christian Ebner.
At the meeting, the officials openly discussed all topics related to bilateral relations. PFG Head Zivota Starcevic, stressed that bilateral relations between the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Austria, with a tradition spanning more than 150 years, are good, stable and comprehensive, as confirmed by political discussions at all levels.
He emphasised that cooperation between the two parliaments, the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia and the Parliament of the Republic of Austria, can make a great contribution to the development of overall bilateral relations and, in that regard, he welcomed the formation of the Parliamentary Friendship Group in the Austrian Parliament, which he invited to visit the National Assembly.
The PFG Head also emphasised the importance of deepening cooperation between the two countries at the level of working bodies, through committees, especially through the Foreign Affairs Committee, European Integration Committee and the committees dealing with the economy, science, culture, education, environmental protection and others. There is also room for cooperation within the framework of standing parliamentary delegations to international parliamentary bodies, such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union, Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly.
MP Zivota Starcevic conveyed the words of the National Assembly Speaker, as well as the position of the PFG with Austria, that our parliament is open to all forms of cooperation with the Parliament of the Republic of Austria.
In the course of the conversation, Starcevic thanked Austria for its staunch and continuous support to Serbia's European integration process, not only through political engagement, but also through the financial and technical support that Austria provides to our country.
Speaking of the situation in Kosovo-Metohija, Starcevic informed the attending about the latest developments and the continued violence of Albanians against the Serbian population. He emphasised that the Republic of Serbia firmly advocates dialogue and compromise, as well as respect for all previous agreements. Since Serbia and Austria do not share the same position on the issue of Kosovo-Metohija, he expressed the hope that the Republic of Austria understands Serbia's positions on this issue. He also welcomed Austria's participation in KFOR, as the presence of KFOR in Kosovo-Metohija is of exceptional importance for the stability and security of the Balkans.
Regarding economic cooperation, he stressed that the cooperation between our two countries is very good. Austria is one of the leading investors in Serbia. That this cooperation is good and can be further developed is confirmed by the joint Declaration on Strengthening Economic Relations, signed in August 2025.
The officials went on to emphasise the police cooperation between our two countries, cooperation at the level of the ministries of interior, not only in the field of organised crime and terrorism, but also in the field of border crossings and border management. Cooperation in the field of defence is also noteworthy.
What connects our two countries, stressed the PFG Head, is our diaspora in Austria, which is very well integrated into Austrian society.
Christian Ebner thanked the PFG for the invitation and the conversation and agreed that bilateral relations are very good, especially emphasising the importance of the trilateral cooperation between Serbia, Austria and Hungary, which has led to Austria having fewer illegal migrants. He assessed the economic cooperation between our two countries as positive and pointed out that there is interest from Austrian investors in investing in Serbia.
The meeting was also attended by MPs Milan Radic and Dunja Simonovic Bratic. They expressed their satisfaction with the participation of the Republic of Austria in the upcoming "EXPO 2027" Specialised Exhibition.
