Orlic meets with Sobotka

BELGRADE - Serbian Parliament Speaker Vladimir Orlic met with his Austrian counterpart Wolfgang Sobotka in Belgrade on Wednesday.

The parties said they were pleased with the good and stable bilateral relations between their countries, whose persistence is testified by the fact next year will mark 150 years of diplomatic ties between Serbia and Austria, the Serbian parliament said in a statement.

Sobotka welcomed the success achieved by Serbia in carrying out comprehensive reforms and reiterated that Austria continued to provide strong and unequivocal support to Serbia on its European path.

Orlic noted that Serbia continued to work with commitment on achieving progress in European integration but that the process was hampered by the grave state of the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, caused by Pristina's refusal to implement all past agreements and form a Community of Serb Municipalities, overdue for over a decade now.

Orlic reiterated that the safety of Serbs in Kosovo-Metohija was under threat on a daily basis and that Pristina was trying to establish its rule in Serb municipalities without any Serb participation, which he noted was contrary to all European standards.

Pristina is constantly seeking a reward for such actions in the form of membership in international organisations, Orlic added.

Sobotka expressed understanding for the circumstances of the dialogue and encouraged its participants to continue discussions to reach a solution and normalisation.

Orlic noted that Serbia remained committed to dialogue and consistent in pursuing a policy of preserving peace, stability, joint development and cooperation and, above all, economic success and new records in its economic cooperation with Austria.

"Austria is our third-largest foreign investor and there are several hundred Austrian companies operating in Serbia, employing over 22,000 workers. What is especially important is that 80 pct of the Austrian companies have reinvested in Serbia, and that information is a clear indicator that our country is recognised as being economically and politically strong and stable. With development of the Open Balkan initiative, Serbia represents the best destination for investments in this part of Europe today," Orlic said.

The parties also discussed opportunities for further strengthening of inter-parliamentary cooperation, and Sobotka noted that a visit to Austria by Orlic would lend a strong impetus to it.