ROMA (ITALPRESS) – Serbia’s accession to the European Union, the strategic partnership and the strengthening of economic relations with Italy: these are some of the themes at the center of the institutional meetings of the group for parliamentary friendship Serbia and Italy and with the Vatican, these days in Rome. “We had the opportunity to speak with the President of the Chamber, Lorenzo Fontana, and also with other members of the Italian Parliament, such as the presidents of the Foreign Commissions, Giulio Tremonti and Stefania Craxi: our meetings confirmed the strategic proximity that exists between Serbia and Italy”, said Jovan Palalic, president of the group for the parliamentary friendship Serbia and Italy and with the Vatican, in an interview with the Italian agency Italpress, on the eve of the visit.
“We have heard a clear view of Italy regarding enlargement to the Western Balkans in the European Union. As regards Serbia, Italy has openly said that there are no conditions, because common European security is at stake. There are other countries that do not share this position, so we asked our Italian friends to speak with them about the importance of a fast enlargement process for Serbia – the largest country in the region – in the European Union. You can’t imagine the completion of European integration without Serbia,” explains Palalic, thanking Italy for supporting the opening of cluster 3.
“Four years ago, the European Commission said that Serbia did everything necessary to continue in the EU accession process, such as electoral laws or media laws, but there are European countries blocking the opening of cluster 3: this is not fair, we cannot accept other political conditions,” said Serbian MP. Palalic explains that the stability of the Balkans is important and “Italy, with its soft power, can have a great role as a mediator in resolving all regional crisis”.
Since March 15, remember, the full application of the law on citizenship in Kosovo is foreseen, which worries Serbian citizens and risks rekindling tensions. “The new law is discriminatory for the Serbs and can create an unsustainable atmosphere to continue living in Kosovo. We are very concerned, our Italian colleagues have learned this today for the first time.” Also regarding migratory flows “it is absolutely our common interest to keep them under control, with particular attention to Kosovo” where there are “terrorist cells of fighter foreigns from Syria”. For energy security, Serbia “points on diversification, because at this moment we have a 100% dependence on Russian gas: surely it is an aspect that can give added value to the stability of the region”.
As for new areas of cooperation between Italy and Serbia, “in addition to a long tradition in automotive and textiles, we have opened new possibilities in the field of new technologies: Serbia has become a hub for IT, startups, artificial intelligence. We have many young educators who can give added value to Italian companies and, with Italian know-how in these sectors, we can do very well and strengthen our economic relations because in the future, in these sectors, there will certainly be spaces to further improve our economic relations. Our governments are discussing laws to simplify what can help new Italian investments and simplify trade flows between Serbia and Italy. Italy at European level is the second trading partner for Serbia, with a lot of investment in the small and medium-sized enterprises,” he concludes.
– Photo xi2/Italpress –
(ITALPRESS).
