Vucic: India will continue its policy of non-recognition of Kosovo

The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, stated today, following his meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, that India will continue its longstanding policy of non-recognition of Kosovo.

“Prime Minister Modi said that this is a matter of mutual respect, understanding, and sensitivity toward one another, and that is correct. Such a policy will continue,” Vucic told journalists in New Delhi, responding to a question as to whether Kosovo and India’s principled position on the matter had been discussed.

Vucic expressed confidence that the Indian Prime Minister would visit Serbia at his invitation.

“I am almost certain that Prime Minister Modi will visit Serbia. In 2023, we hosted the President of India after 40 years without such a visit to Serbia. I hope that Modi will also visit our country,” Vucic said.

He conveyed that they had held an exceptionally friendly and substantive discussion.

“India was the only superpower that had not yet confirmed its participation in Expo, and today Prime Minister Modi made it clear and unequivocal that India wishes to participate significantly and will come to Expo in Belgrade,” Vucic stated.

Vucic recalled that the two countries have not held a session of the Intergovernmental Committee since 2017, and said he had decided to ask Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia Siniša Mali to agree to serve as co-chair on behalf of Serbia, with the proposal expected to be approved at Friday’s government session.

He said that, in talks with Modi, they had identified areas in which cooperation could be of major importance.

“First and foremost, cooperation in innovative technologies, artificial intelligence, and IT; second, the defense industry; and third, agriculture and other industrial sectors,” Vucic added.

He noted that Serbia could export ammunition to India.

“When someone purchases and orders 112 Rafale aircraft, regardless of the country’s size, and also possesses MiGs and Meteor systems, in addition to everything they produce themselves, that is an enormous force. They are aiming for substantial GDP growth between 2028 and 2030, and this is a vast market… For us, as a small country, this represents an opportunity to seize. They respect our freedom, independence, and sovereignty in decision-making, and they know that when they reach an agreement with us, they are agreeing solely with us and that no third party can influence that. That is a significant advantage for Serbia,” Vucic said.

He recalled that his previous official meeting with Modi took place in 2017, when Serbia was only at the beginning of its reform process.

“Now is the right moment for us to offer more. At that time, we had virtually nothing in terms of a developed IT sector or artificial intelligence. Today, we rank 39th globally in readiness to attract investment in artificial intelligence,” the Serbian President added.

He stated that Serbia must resolve the visa regime issue in order to facilitate a greater inflow of Indian investors, noting that the visa-free regime with India had been suspended at the request of the European Union.

“Significant opportunities are opening for our presence here, as well as for young, talented Indians to come to Serbia and assist us in developing a sovereign artificial intelligence model,” Vucic said.

He also noted that an opinion piece he authored and published in an Indian media outlet had attracted considerable attention, and that Prime Minister Modi told him it had generated strong sympathy among the Indian public.

“With a small gesture, we achieved significant visibility for Serbia,” he added.

Vucic announced that he would meet later today in New Delhi with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, whom he described as a friend of Serbia.

He is also scheduled to meet with an investor from Nepal, as well as Indian investors.

He will then attend the Leaders’ Summit and a leaders’ dinner, followed by a visit to an artificial intelligence fair.

“We are one of 12 countries with our own stand at the fair, and there are many visitors at our pavilion,” Vucic noted with satisfaction.

He emphasized that Serbia continues to develop its infrastructure in this field and announced that a third supercomputer is expected to arrive in Serbia by March.