Tajani: Community of Serb municipalities should be formed without further delay

BELGRADE - Italian FM Antonio Tajani says a Community of Serb Municipalities in Kosovo-Metohija should be formed without further delay and that a March 18 agreement from Ohrid, North Macedonia, presents an exceptional opportunity for continued normalisation of Belgrade-Pristina relations.

In an interview for Tanjug, Tajani also said Tuesday's Serbia-Italy business and scientific forum aimed to support the growth of the Serbian economy and offered great opportunities to Italian companies.

"Italy's interest and presence in the Balkans are a constant of our foreign policy and represent an inevitable destiny. That is why I have placed special emphasis on restarting our diplomatic activities in the region. Therefore, Italy's active involvement in the EU-facilitated Belgrade-Pristina dialogue is nothing new, but a direction that we have always supported and that we see as necessary for preserving peace and stability in a region that is strategically important to us and to Europe," he said.

"First of all, we are convinced that agreements signed by the two parties to date must be fully implemented, starting from establishment of a community of Serb-majority municipalities, which must be established without further delay, in line with the provisions of the Brussels Agreement," Tajani also said.

"It is an important step, also stressed in a joint letter sent to President Vucic and PM Kurti by Council of Ministers President Giorgia Meloni together with President Macron and Chancellor Scholz ahead of a Brussels meeting on February 27 this year," he said.

"The agreement reached in Ohrid on March 18 based on the European proposal now presents an exceptional opportunity for continuing the normalisation between Belgrade and Pristina, which is essential for the European perspective of both parties. The agreement must now be implemented without delay. In that sense, we appreciate the fact President Vucic undertook the obligation, which is once again a testimony to his realistic and constructive position," Tajani said.

Speaking about the business and scientific forum, he said it was a "first concrete follow-up to a national conference on the Balkans, held in Trieste on January 24."

"On that occasion, together with our manufacturing sector, we stated to think in the direction of developing a comprehensive strategy and positioning companies at the centre of Italian presence in Serbia and the Western Balkans," he said.

"The business and scientific forum is an expression of that vision. We want to support the growth of the Serbian economy, which is one of the leading economies in the region and offers great opportunities to Italian companies. Our goal is to renew our economic presence in Serbia by focusing on several strategic and innovative sectors: the green and energy transition, sustainable agriculture and agrotechnology, infrastructure and scientific cooperation," he said.

"Besides, thanks to the Italy's deposits and loans fund - Cassa Depositi e Prestiti - SACE and SIMEST, we will also make available a series of financial tools aimed at supporting internationalisation of Italian companies. The more than 150 companies that will be attending the business and scientific forum and the nearly 400 already agreed B2B meetings show that the path we have taken is the right one. We are confident the business and scientific forum will be the starting point of a new stage in Italy-Serbia economic cooperation based on partnerships between our companies," Tajani said.

Speaking about Italy's economic presence in Serbia, he said over 1,200 companies with Italian capital were operating across the country.

"They are very diverse companies, ranging from large groups to micro enterprises active in the most diverse sectors (from the automotive industry to banking and from the textile industry to the insurance sector, all the way to digitalisation and renewable energy sources)," he said.

Tajani said the Italian business network employed around 50,000 people in Serbia and accounted for over 5 pct of Serbia's GDP.

He also said Italy remained Serbia's third-largest economic partner and that the bilateral trade volume had exceeded 4.5 bln euros in 2022.