Serbian Foreign Minister, Ivica Dacic met with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu on 19th August to attend the official inauguration ceremony of the opening of the the Honorary Consulate of Serbia in Antalya, Turkey.
The Turkish news agency, Anadolu reports that, on the occasion, Dacic said that Serbia would never be part of any coalition that would be anti-Turkish.
“Serbia will never be part of any coalitions that is working against Turkey, including some of the organizations that operate in the countries in our region. Serbia will never facilitate anyone who would fight against the interests of the Turkish state and our Turkish friends,” Dacic said.
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The two ministers also discussed bilateral co-operation and regional issues and agreed that bilateral relations were good, and that they are boosted by the personal relationship between the presidents of the two countries.
At the meeting, the two officials also reiterated that the economic cooperation between Serbia and Turkey has been constantly developing, with the annual value of the external trade now standing at USD 1 billion annually, with the goal of reaching at least a USD 3 billion mark.
The number of tourists visiting the two countries has been growing steadily, and now it stands at close to 100,000 Turkish tourists in Serbia and 140,000 Serbian tourists in Turkey.
It is estimated that Serbia and Turkey have a great mutual understanding and agreement when it comes to a number of international issues, and that both countries need to work together to improve their international positions.
The fight against terrorism, the opening of cultural centers and investment cooperation are just some of the fields where further cooperation will grow.
“Our two countries have abolished mutual visas and this is one of the biggest signs of friendship between countries. We have also introduced a free trade regime, and we are continuing to cooperate”, Dacic added.
He added that there was a significant number of Serbian citizens living in Turkey, as well as that there is a number of Turks living in Serbia. “We all have to and should use this fact to improve our joint existence and common interests of both Serbia and Turkey,” Dacic concluded, as reported by the Anadolu press agency.
(Blic, 19.08.2018)
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