Serbia, U.S. Sign Agreement on Strategic Cooperation in Energy

Washington (Photo: Pixabay)

The U.S. and Serbia signed in Washington on Sept. 18 an agreement on strategic cooperation in the field of energy, which is to expand opportunities for U.S. companies to invest in Serbia's energy sector, the Department of State has announced. The agreement was signed by U.S. Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Jose W. Fernandez and Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric.

The agreement will, according to the State Department, expand opportunities for U.S. companies to invest in Serbia's energy sector, including promoting U.S. investments that will strengthen the strategic partnership between the U.S. and Serbia.

After the signing, Djuric said that by concluding the agreement on strategic cooperation in energy with the U.S., Serbia had taken an important and responsible step toward advancing its partnership with the country and a significant step toward ensuring long-term energy security.

U.S. Under Secretary Fernandez said that the signing of the agreement would raise Serbia-U.S. cooperation to a higher level, the Serbian Foreign Ministry said in a release. The U.S.' capacity to work on clean energy, as well as the opportunity for U.S. companies to invest in clean energy technologies in Serbia, is something the U.S. greatly appreciates, said Fernandez.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources Geoffrey R. Pyatt said that the U.S.-Serbia agreement on strategic cooperation in energy also focused on the "mineral aspect." When asked whether the agreement also pertained to lithium, Pyatt, who earlier described the opening of a Rio Tinto mine as a generational opportunity for Serbia, replied that there was no reason not to deepen cooperation in the area of critical minerals too.