Vucic: People in Serbia should know that we cannot move forward without the EU

The President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, attended the ceremonial signing of the Financial Agreement for the European Union's energy support package for Serbia today, Pink reports.

Vucic thanked for the important and wonderful day for Serbia, adding that the Serbs sometimes did not know how to express their gratitude adequately.

"Today, what was signed represents one percent of our income for the annual budget. They gave us the money of their taxpayers. People must know that 165 million euros is exactly as I said - it is a big help for us. We are infinitely grateful for that. Yes, in the division of labor that exists in Europe, we will be able to save some of the small and medium-sized enterprises. And we wouldn't be able to do that without the support and help of the EU. This is a big gift for us, a lot of money, and I hope we will be able to say thank you," the president added.

It was up to us to work on the rule of law, and to do everything necessary for the citizens of Serbia to have a better life, Vucic said.

"Every year we have about two billion direct investments. Our trade in goods amounted to 40 billion euros, which is a huge growth because it represents 59 of our total trade with the whole world. As of 2022, our trade with the EU has increased fourfold. Just so people understand what we live on. People should know that we use this money to pay our professors, doctors, and all public workers," Vucic explained.

As he added, people in Serbia should know that we could not move forward without the EU.

"I want people to know that Serbia largely depends on the EU, that without the EU it is difficult or impossible to move forward. I also know on behalf of the citizens that I can respond strongly to something that comes to the EU, but I have to know what feeds our country, and what brings jobs to young people. Not to tell you what kind of conspiracy theories you've been hearing in recent days," the president continued.

Vucic thanked Giaufret and Ursula von der Leyen.

"So, thank you and Emanuele for your personal engagement, thank you, Ursula - because she went to Nis twice while visiting Serbia, which means a lot to us. Serbia is not only Belgrade, for us, it is also the most beautiful country in the world. You can tell the officials that when they come, it would be nice if we went to Novi Sad or somewhere, to any city in our beautiful Serbia. Thank you for helping us celebrate the National Day of Serbia. Long live Serbia, long live our friendship," the President of Serbia said.

Ambassador and Head of the Delegation of the European Union in the Republic of Serbia, Emanuele Giaufret, pointed out that he was happy because he was in Belgrade, especially because of the importance of the document that had been signed.

"The Russian invasion has disrupted the energy supply, which poses risks for our energy economies. We stick together, we act differently, and the results have been shown in a good light. It has been confirmed that the European economy will grow, and inflation will decrease. By sticking together, we can survive," he added.

As he added, the EU's commitment to the Western Balkans was unequivocal.

"This was confirmed in Tirana, and these are not words, but we also have actions. The package of one billion euros is intended for the Western Balkans, which will help the energy value, the people who need it, and so on," the ambassador said.

Giaufret adds that the mentioned money will contribute to the Serbian budget.

The signing ceremony is held at the National Dispatch Center of the “Elektromreza Srbije”.