Djuric at the Ministerial Meeting in Rome: Serbia's main challenge remains the Dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina

At the "Friends of the Western Balkans" ministerial meeting in Rome, the Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Marko Djuric, highlighted the significance of global and regional initiatives and Serbia's commitment to the Euro-integration process, emphasizing that the primary challenge for Serbia remains the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina.

Djuric expressed pleasure at the opportunity to address the gathering at the beginning of what he considers a very important year for Europe as a whole, and especially for this region.

Speaking on Serbia's commitment to the Euro-integration process, Djuric reminded that over the past two and a half years, serious reforms have been initiated, involving the adoption of a series of legal reforms that have been praised and recognized by the EU.

He pointed out the importance of this entire process, as the government has officially set December 31, 2026, as the deadline by which it plans to implement all legal, political, and other legislative reforms to align with EU standards. "I think these are good news for Serbia, and I believe they could be good news for Europe as well," Djuric emphasized.

According to him, Serbia has also taken over the presidency of the Central European Initiative (CEI) this year, highlighting that this presidency will be used to encourage regional connectivity and improve infrastructure.

Among the many successes that Serbia records, Djuric singled out Serbia's aspiration to be a leader in economic growth in the region, yet the main challenge, as he assessed, remains the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina.

"We welcome the appointment of Peter Sorensen, whose role we will strongly support. In the coming days, I will meet with him and try to encourage an approach where trust-building measures are the focus. I believe we can strengthen work on implementing the agreements reached so far and other commitments taken, but at the same time find something new that would be beneficial for both sides," the minister highlighted.

The head of Serbian diplomacy also pointed out the importance of Serbia's presidency of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence, adding that today's gathering in Rome is also an opportunity to discuss with officials from the region proposals on how to make this presidency even more effective.