Gasic meets with Ohio National Guard commander

BELGRADE - Serbian Defence Minister Bratislav Gasic met with Ohio National Guard Commander Maj-Gen John Harris in Belgrade on Thursday to discuss further advancement of cooperation.

Harris is on an official visit to Serbia.

Gasic noted that Serbia actively contributed to preservation of stability and security in the region and was committed to continue to cherish and advance its relations with the US, as a major partner, in all areas of mutual interest.

He said the successful cooperation between the Serbian Armed Forces and the Ohio National Guard, underway for a full 18 years under a partnership programme, was making a strong contribution to Serbia-US relations.

Gasic said the cooperation with the Ohio National Guard strengthened the operational capabilities of the Serbian Armed Forces and raised the level of interoperability for participation of Serbian Armed Forces troops in peacekeeping operations with a view to maintaining world peace.

Harris said the cooperation was extremely successful and expressed a commitment to continue the work on advancing it further, and noted that he highly valued the professionalism of Serbian Armed Forces personnel.

He added that the Serbian Armed Forces had made noticeable progress when it comes to the level of training and equipment.