First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia Ivica Dacic met today with Ms. Paraskevi Michou, Director-General of the European Commission Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs (DG HOME).

Discussing the visa policy of the Republic of Serbia, which was the main focus of the talks, Minister Dacic stressed that Serbia had made significant steps forward in this field, particularly concerning the alignment with EU standards. He pointed out that, when deciding on a visa regime, the Republic of Serbia was first and foremost guided by the prospects for the promotion of its international position and the encouragement of cooperation in economy and tourism. At the same time, the Serbian side had taken a number of measures to prevent potential abuse of visa liberalization, and was successful in this regard according to the parameters available.

On the topic of migration issues, Minister Dacic and Director-General Michou agreed that mutual cooperation and a solidary approach were necessary in order to address the migrant crisis with success.

Furthermore, the collocutors stressed that open dialogue was of particular importance for fruitful cooperation and, thus, conveyed their readiness for further active contacts and information exchange between the Government of the Republic of Serbia and the European Commission.