Costa with Vučić: Serbia's place is in the European Union, but concrete actions and reforms are needed

(Patria) - Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić spoke with European Council President Antonio Costa in Belgrade and stressed that Serbia remains committed to the European path and sincerely and firmly committed to reforms and dialogue.

At a joint press conference, Vučić said that Serbia's political will is to accelerate its integration, to do its job, to open cluster three as soon as possible.

"Whether it will be in June or October, I don't think anyone can know that. The atmosphere is, now I am convinced because of the trip to Moscow, not quite so good, but we are on the way to fulfill everything we promised in March, and then I believe that in Europe there will be understanding for our merit-based progress," Vučić said at the conference.

He stated that he hopes to end his term as president with Serbia significantly closer to EU membership than it is today.

"Once again, thank you to Antonio Costa for visiting Belgrade, for visiting Serbia, and I believe we will have good talks on Thursday evening in Tirana, and on Friday. It won't be quite easy because of this trip to Moscow, but I believe that in the end it will all be very fruitful," Vučić said.

European Council President Antonio Costa stated that in December, since the beginning of his term, he sent a clear signal for EU enlargement to the Western Balkans, noting that today he begins a visit to partners in the region.

"This is the fourth time we have met since I took office. The EU accession process is a process of building trust. We have positive momentum for enlargement, which is a signal for Serbia to seize it. We remain strongly committed to Serbia's accession to the European Union as a stable and prosperous country. I am glad to hear that European integration is a priority, but now concrete actions and reforms are needed," Costa emphasized.

According to his words, the next step for opening cluster three is media freedom, fighting corruption, and improving electoral laws. He also stressed that the Belgrade-Priština dialogue is of key importance, as well as a policy of clearly condemning the "brutal Russian aggression" against Ukraine.

"Dear Aleksandar, the accession process is based on building trust. I know that many have lost trust in this process, but I came to personally assure you that Serbia's future is in the EU. The ball is now in your court. Please, let's not waste time, because the future will not wait. Let's open the cluster and continue with the process," Costa said.

According to his words, EU accession is not something that Europe wants to impose, but represents the free will of each country.

"Each country has decided for itself whether it wants to join the European Union. Membership requires fulfilling all the criteria that are clearly defined in the Copenhagen decision," Costa concluded.