The first round of informal political consultations between the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was held today in Belgrade.

The EEAS delegation was headed by Deputy Secretary General for Political Affairs of the European External Action Service Jean-Christophe Belliard, and the delegation of the Foreign Ministry was led by Ambassador Zoran Vujic, Political Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In January 2017, joint political consultations of the EEAS and representatives from the Western Balkans Foreign Ministries were held in Brussels, but these were the first bilateral consultations of its kind the EEAS had in our region.

They exchanged views on the key foreign policy topics of mutual interest. The two sides agreed that a direct and frank exchange of views was very important, taking into account the numerous current developments worldwide and the very close foreign policy cooperation between Serbia and the EU, and particularly owing to the fact that the Republic of Serbia was a candidate country for EU membership in the process of accession talks, and that, in this context, the agenda also included issues concerning the Common Foreign, Security and Defence Policy (CFSDP), particularly regarding the progressive alignment of Serbia's positions with those of the EU.

Minister Dacic took this opportunity for a brief courtesy call on him by Mr. Jean-Christophe Belliard, conveying his expectations that this form of dialogue between the two sides would ensure a higher level of mutual understanding concerning the positions of either side, continued promotion of cooperation and contribute to the further progress of Serbia's negotiating process, taking into account the importance of Serbia's foreign policy activity and engagement in the process of European integration.