Dacic Gives Diplomatic Academy Students Lecture on Serbian Foreign Policy Priorities

Ivica Dacic (Beta/Milan Obradovic)

Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic on March 11 in Belgrade gave a lecture to students of the Foreign Ministry's Diplomatic Academy on the goals and priorities of the Serbian foreign policy.

Kosovo is an issue of utmost national interest, a priority political subject, but also the biggest political and security challenge, said Dacic, adding that the withdrawal and freezing of recognition of Kosovo by 18 countries is a result of Serbia's foreign policy, the Ministry said in a press release. The Ministry added that it was continuously carrying out diplomatic activities to prevent and dispute Kosovo's admission to international organizations and specialized agencies.

Speaking about relations with the U.S., Dacic said that Serbia was a reliable and responsible partner, "deeply aware of the differences of opinion in solving the Kosovo issue," but with a desire to improve relations. He went on to say that intensifying the political dialogue was already yielding results: economic relations and military cooperation were developing.

Serbia finds preserving the prospect of the entire region's membership in the EU very important, because it is the best guarantee of achieving lasting regional stability, and that is the main reason why Serbia strongly supports its neighbors' European aspirations, looking kindly on the progress they make, said Dacic. He announced that Chinese President Xi Jinping would visit Serbia for the second time, in the second half of 2020.