Vucic receives Statehood Day messages from many world leaders

BELGRADE - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has received congratulatory messages from many world leaders on occasion of February 15, Serbia's Statehood Day.

On behalf of the people of the US, US President Joe Biden extended best wishes to Vucic and the people of Serbia.

Biden wrote that building a more successful and more stable Western Balkans was in the interest of both the US and Serbia and that he looked forward to advancing that goal through strengthening regional energy security and expanding bilateral economic ties.

He added that US and Serbian armed forces continued to serve side by side on Sinai, advancing regional peace and security, and that Serbia's participation in UN and EU peacekeeping missions had also been crucial for supporting stability in other parts of the world.

Biden wrote that the US appreciated Serbia's support for Ukraine in defence of its sovereignty and territorial integrity during a brutal invasion by Russia, and noted that the US strongly supported Serbia's path to EU accession and remained committed to helping Serbia strengthen its democratic institutions towards accomplishing that goal.

He also encouraged Serbia to continue last year's progress in the EU-facilitated dialogue with Pristina, and noted that an agreement on normalisation and implementation represented a key step towards a more peaceful and more successful future of Serbia, the region and Europe.

In his message, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wished happiness and good health to Vucic and prosperity and well-being to the friendly people of Serbia.

Congratulating Vucic on Statehood Day, French President Emmanuel Macron underscored the significance he attached to the relations between Serbia and France.

"Our cooperation is based on a century-long friendship and includes a large number of fields. I express a desire for France and Serbia to continue to strengthen their relationship, especially through economic projects, including, potentially, the specialised EXPO, to be hosted by Belgrade in 2027. Support for Serbia's European integration remains a priority of our partnership. France will also continue to support the EU-facilitated dialogue towards normalising relations between Belgrade and Pristina," Macron wrote.

Extending his best wishes to Vucic and the people of Serbia, Italian President Sergio Mattarella noted that the past year had seen a further deepening of cooperation between Belgrade and Rome that had enabled the ties between the two countries and peoples to become even stronger.

Vucic also received congratulatory messages from Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen, Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides, Polish President Andrzej Duda, Belgium's King Philip, Dutch King Willem-Alexander, Japanese Emperor Naruhito, Saudi King Selman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Bahrein's King Hammad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Moroccan King Mohammed VI, Croatian President Zoran Milanovic, Slovenian PM Natasa Pirc Musar and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

Indian President Droupadi Murmu extended best wishes for Vucic's good health and well-being as well as for continued progress and prosperity of the friendly people of Serbia.

She noted that her visit to beautiful Serbia last year had reconfirmed a mutual commitment to taking the historical relations between the two countries to new heights.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi wrote that the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Republic of Serbia had significant opportunities to develop their relations in all bilateral, regional and international fields as well as a mutual determination to achieve that, heralding a bright future for the great peoples of Iran and Serbia.

Australian Governor-General David Hurley, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe, Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh, Singaporean President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Transitional President of Gabon Brice Oligui Nguema, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Armenian President Armen Sarkissian, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov and President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedow also sent congratulatory messages.