Dacic thanks San Marino for supporting Serbia's EXPO 2027 bid

BELGRADE - Serbian First Deputy PM and FM Ivica Dacic on Tuesday thanked San Marino for supporting Serbia's successful bid to host EXPO 2027.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with San Marino's Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Economic Cooperation and Telecommunications Luca Beccari in Belgrade, Dacic said Serbia would return the favour by ensuring the best possible conditions for a presentation of San Marino at the world expo.

"As early as in the weeks to come, we will be making the first steps to institutionally capture all the topics we need to deal with as we approach the EXPO - from logistics to political discussions with individual countries that want to be present and that we want to help to make their presence as significant as possible because those countries have helped us," Dacic announced.

He noted that bilateral ties with San Marino had seen major improvement but that there was still ample room for continued cooperation.

"We do not have a high level of bilateral trade between Serbia and San Marino - it was at around 1 mln euros last year. But I think there are investments from San Marino in Serbia, and they are proposing that we discuss an agreement on mutual promotion and protection of foreign investment. We support San Marino's participation in the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative, and wherever we can work together, we will be looking for opportunities for cooperation and joint interests," Dacic said.

"Serbia is sincerely extending a hand of friendship to San Marino to enable the two countries to get by in a world where strong winds are blowing and where ships like ours must stay afloat and find safe passage to a harbour," Dacic told Beccari.

Beccari said he was grateful for the opportunity to come to Serbia and added that he hoped his visit would be followed by many more in the future.

He said Serbia and San Marino could develop economic, business and cultural relations and that the two economies could easily find different forms of development to boost bilateral trade and investment.

The meeting of the two officials was also an opportunity to ceremonially mark the 20th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Serbia and San Marino.

Dacic presented to Beccari a postage stamp commemorating the anniversary and noted that San Marino was equally important to Serbia as states with populations of hundreds of millions.