First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia Ivica Dacic met today with Radek Vondráček, Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament.

Dacic and Vondráček underlined that the two countries were tied by traditional friendship and closeness between the two peoples as well as by the readiness to use those ties today as a fertile ground for building cooperation of even stronger dynamic in a number of areas of common interest.

Minister Dacic emphasized that, at this point, a continued dialogue was maintained at all levels, recalling that last year saw the marking of an important anniversary – 100 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations. He thanked the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies for the support offered by the Czech Republic to Serbia's European integration, underlining that Serbia continued to pursue reforms in the interest of its citizens, aiming to boost the overall standard of living.
Minister Dacic informed Vondráček about the situation in Kosovo and Metohija, recalling that it had been Pristina that imposed the illegal 100% tariffs on goods originating from central Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, having also adopted a decision to form a so-called Kosovo army, thus destabilizing the entire region, and reiterated that Serbia held a consistent position that all disputes needed to be resolved through dialogue.

Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament Radek Vondráček underlined that the Serbia-Czech Republic relations were excellent, not only at the political level, but also in the fields of science, education and culture.
Mr. Vondráček stressed that the Czech Republic supported Serbia on its European path and pointed out his belief that, despite the upcoming elections in the EU and challenges like Brexit, the Union should continue to pursue the enlargement policy considering that it had been founded on this principle as well as that it needed to pay attention to the development of entire Europe and its stability.