First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia Ivica Dacic said today in a statement for RTS national broadcast service that the decision made by Greece to close its borders for Serbian tourists could be amended at one point upon further examination.

Minister Dacic said that he hoped that facts to be taken into account the next time this issue was considered would be different, as it was clear that Greece had an interest to receive foreign tourists.

"This morning at 6 a.m. Greece closed its border for Serbian citizens because of the adverse epidemiological situation in our country", Minister Dacic said.

Minister Dacic informed that the decision would remain effective until 15 July when it would be re-examined as well as that essential travel to the country was possible on being granted a special approval.
"Serbian tourists already staying in Greece will be able to spend their entire vacations there as planned", Minister Dacic said.

Minister Dacic recalled that the EU had issued a recommendation to its Member States to put Serbia on the list of countries to be granted free entry, stressing that this was still just a recommendation.

"In the period ahead, we will be discussing this with each EU Member State individually. From the very beginning, Greece advocated giving a green light to the Serbian citizens and opened its borders", Minister Dacic said.

However, the Minister informed that the Serbian Embassy was yesterday informed by the Office of the Greek Prime Minister that the borders would be closed for the Serbian citizens amid the situation in the region and also as information appeared that infected tourists from Serbia were already staying in Greece.

"The decision is an unpleasant one", Minister Dacic said and added that borders of other countries such as Hungary and some EU Member States were open for Serbian citizens.

Minister Ivica Dacic stressed that such decisions were being made merely a day or a few hours before becoming effective and that the situation in this regard changed due to coronavirus. For this reason, he appealed on the citizens not to embark on trips to any destination before getting thoroughly informed.

"This is an ongoing matter, changing with each moment", Minister Dacic said.

Asked about the citizens who had already booked and paid for their vacations, the Minister replied that this was not the competence of the Foreign Ministry. However, he did point out that the circumstances surrounding summer vacations became highly unpredictable as one could never know what measures would be imposed. The Minister also noted that the pandemic was not on the decline, but that it was on the rise in some countries and on some continents.