Djuric, Bass discuss Serbia-US partnership

BELGRADE - Serbian FM Marko Djuric met on Thursday in Washington with John Bass, acting under secretary for political affairs at the US State Department, highlighting the significance of a good dynamics of meetings between Serbian and US officials and open dialogue at high and the highest level.

Serbia and the US are connected by 143 years of diplomatic relations and we are ready to continue to strengthen our partnership in all areas of mutual interest, Djuric said at the meeting.

He noted opening strategic dialogue with the US would send a strong signal of both countries' commitment to the shared goal of continuing to advance bilateral relations in terms of both quality and quantity, the Serbian MFA said in a statement.

Djuric informed Bass of the foreign policy priorities of Serbia's new government, including completion of key reforms on the path to EU membership by 2027, and thanked the US for supporting Serbia's EU integration process.

Speaking about Kosovo-Metohija as the top national issue for Serbia, Djuric expressed regret Pristina continued to undermine dialogue and all attempts by Belgrade to find a compromise solution.

Djuric noted that, as in the past, Belgrade would remain a constructive partner in the process of normalisation of relations with Pristina but that, on the other hand, more active presence of the international community was needed to get the Pristina interim self-government institutions to finally meet all their commitments from more than a decade ago, the statement said.