Belgrade, 7 September 2022 (TDI): The President of Turkiye, Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a joint press conference with Aleksandar Vucic, President of Serbia, on Wednesday.
“Our trade volume with Serbia continued its steady rise despite the pandemic” https://t.co/BMUsgoi7wb pic.twitter.com/LNwgVktEC1
— Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye (@trpresidency) September 7, 2022
Remarks by President of Turkiye
President of Turkiye, Tayyip Erdogan thanked his Serbian counterpart for his hospitality, and remarked, “We have had highly productive talks both in bilateral and inter-delegation formats. We have discussed in detail our relations, and the steps we will take in the period ahead.”
He added, “We have exchanged views regarding regional and international matters, the developments in Bosnia and Herzegovina in particular. Our relations with Serbia, which are already at an excellent level, improve further day by day.”
Noting the bilateral relations between the two countries, the Turkish President said: “Our bilateral trade volume has continued its steady rise despite the conditions of the pandemic.
He highlighted, “Last year, we have neared the level of $2 billion with a rise of over 33 percent. I believe we will continue to work with the same determination to achieve our shared goal of $5 billion.”
President Tayyip Erdogan further emphasized, “Our contractors have carried out 50 projects with a value of $847 million so far in Serbia. I would like to take this occasion to thank my dear friend President Vučić for his support to our entrepreneurs.
He added, “The newly-completed Novi Pazar-Tutin State Road is an outcome of President Vučić’s visionary approach. TİKA will have completed 350 projects and activities in Serbia by year’s end.
We will begin as soon as possible the restoration of the Bayraklı Mosque, which is our shared historical and cultural heritage.”
Further, President Erdogan also mentioned about Turkiye’s consular office in NIS. He said, “Every year, many of our citizens, living in Europe and traveling by land to Türkiye stop over Niš.
Therefore, we have opened a consular office in Niš. Our consular office will not only serve our citizens but also contribute to developing our commercial, economic and cultural relations.”
Also Read: President of Turkiye arrives in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Turkiye’s support for Balkans
President Erdoğan further reaffirmed Türkiye’s commitment to promoting peace and stability in the Balkans.
He stated, “We are highly pleased to see that an agreement has been reached on the border crossing between Serbia and Kosovo with ID cards. We hope an agreement will also be reached soon on other matters, the issue of license plates in particular.
He also said, “We have always sincerely supported the resolution of problems through dialogue, and we continue to do so. When asked for help, we make the necessary contributions by using all our means in a constructive and objective manner.
We stand ready to do our part in bringing together parties in a format agreed upon by the three communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina.”
Lastly, he emphasized that “the Türkiye-Serbia Business Forum, which we will attend with President Vucic, is a symbol of our will.”
