Following the talks, the sides signed a number of Russian-Serbian intergovernmental and interdepartmental agreements, as well as corporate documents.
Dmitry Medvedev’s talks with Prime Minister of Serbia Ana Brnabic
Dmitry Medvedev meets with President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic
Documents signed following the talks
Aleksandar Vucic and Dmitry Medvdev’s statement for the press following Russia-Serbia talks
Dmitry
Medvedev’s talks with Prime Minister of Serbia Ana Brnabic
Excerpts from the transcript:
Dmitry Medvedev’s official visit to the Republic of Serbia
Dmitry Medvedev’s official visit to the Republic of Serbia
Dmitry Medvedev’s official visit to the Republic of Serbia
Ana Brnabic (via interpreter): Once again, let me officially welcome you to the Palace of Serbia. Thank you for taking the time to join us in celebrating our common victory in the Second World War.
It was a great honour for us to have President Vladimir Putin as a guest this year. Your visit additionally confirms a high level of relations between the Russian Federation and Serbia.
Thank you very much and welcome to Serbia.
Dmitry Medvedev: Prime Minister,
The last time I visited Serbia was 10 years ago, on 20 October 2009. It is a great pleasure for me to be in your friendly country again, and this time there is a very good reason: to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Belgrade’s liberation.
This is our common holiday. On the other hand, it is also an excellent opportunity for us to exchange views on the development of our relations.
I am very happy to meet you. I hope that the talks today and your visit to Moscow, which is planned for the near future, will promote the development of our cooperation across the board.
Once again, thank you for the warm reception and for the wonderful weather. Let’s begin our talks.
Dmitry Medvedev meets with President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic
Excerpts from the transcript:
Dmitry Medvedev meets with President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic
Aleksandar Vucic: Mr Medvedev, my dear friend, I hope it feels like home to you here in Belgrade and in Serbia.
It is a great honour for us to welcome you to Belgrade today, as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of the liberation of our capital city. Your visit confirms the sincere friendly relations between our countries and our people.
As for our economic relations, I believe we should work harder to develop and strengthen them. But overall, all is well, our trade is growing, and everything is going well with the gas pipeline. And the rest is even better, if I may say so.
Thank you very much, and we are grateful to President Putin for supporting Serbia’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence. We really appreciate it.
Visit
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Dmitry Medvedev’s talks with Milorad Dodik, Serb member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
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Dmitry Medvedev delivers a speech at the National Assembly of Serbia
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Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister of Serbia Ana Brnabic visit the Liberators of Belgrade Memorial
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Dmitry Medvedev’s interview with the Serbian Vecernje Novosti daily
Once again, welcome to Serbia, and many thanks for your visit.
Dmitry Medvedev: Mr President, dear friend, I am happy to be your guest. And the reason for my visit, the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Belgrade, is a good one, too.
Our communication today started with the demonstration of military equipment, with an armed forces parade. I would like to note that it was very impressive. It shows that Serbia’s economy is growing and provides an opportunity to strengthen its defence capacity and security, and you as the President are in charge of it. My congratulations on this, too.
We held talks on the economy. Indeed, we are doing well. As you have justly noted, our trade is climbing, and investments are growing. We will shortly witness our colleagues signing a number of documents. We are marking today’s event that connects our people with good results. Thank you very much for inviting and welcoming us, and for the wonderful weather, too. We have got everything we could wish for from our Serbian friends today.
I have just delivered a speech at the National Assembly of Serbia in a similarly friendly and welcoming atmosphere. I spoke about our view of our countries’ development.
President Putin passed on his greetings and best wishes.
Aleksandar Vucic: Thank you very much for these kind words. I would also like to express my condolences on the tragic events in the Krasnoyarsk Territory.
Dmitry Medvedev: These are truly tragic events.
Aleksandar Vucic: My condolences to you and the Russian people. And thank you again.
Dmitry Medvedev: Thank you for your support and condolences.
After the talks, the following documents were signed in the presence of Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic:
Agreement between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Republic of Serbia on the establishment and operation of cultural and information centres
Signed by: Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Alexander Grushko and First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the Republic of Serbia Ivica Dacic
Agreement of intent on joint realisation of the comprehensive modernisation of the Belgrade – Bar railway section.
Signed by: Executive Officer – Chairman of the Executive Board of Russian Railways Oleg Belozyorov and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure of the Republic of Serbia Zorana Mihajlovic
Agreement between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Republic of Serbia on the transfer of the Petersburg Leaf of the Miroslav Gospel to the Republic of Serbia and paintings by Nicholas Roerich to the Russian Federation
Signed by: Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation Vladimir Medinsky and Minister of Culture and Information of the Republic of Serbia Vladan Vukoslavljevic
Agreement between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Republic of Serbia on granting a state export loan to the Government of the Republic of Serbia
Signed by: Deputy Finance Minister of the Russian Federation Yury Zubarev and Minister of Finance of the Republic of Serbia Sinisa Mali
Agreement between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Republic of Serbia on cooperation in plant quarantine and protection
Signed by: Deputy Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Federation Sergei Levin and Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Resources of the Republic of Serbia Branislav Nedimovic
Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia
Signed by: Minister of Education of the Russian Federation Olga Vasilyeva and Minister of Education, Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia Mladen Sarcevic
Agreement between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Republic of Serbia on cooperation in building the Centre of Nuclear Science, Technology and Innovation in the Republic of Serbia
Signed by: Director General of the State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom Alexei Likhachev and Minister without portfolio responsible for innovation and technological development in the Government of the Republic of Serbia Nenad Popovic
Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation and the Office of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia on cooperation in developing innovations and digital technologies in industry
Signed by: Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation Oleg Ryazantsev and Minister without portfolio responsible for innovation and technological development in the Government of the Republic of Serbia Nenad Popovic
Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of the Economy of the Republic of Serbia on deploying Russian industrial production facilities on the territory of the Republic of Serbia
Signed by: Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation Oleg Ryazantsev and Minister of the Economy of the Republic of Serbia Goran Knezevic
Protocol of Cooperation between the Federal Customs Service (Russian Federation) and the Customs Administration of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Serbia in countering customs violations related to the shipment of goods by air, and Memorandum of Understanding between the Federal Customs Service (Russian Federation) and the Customs Administration of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Serbia on cooperation between customs authorities at Sheremetyevo Moscow International Airport and Nikola Tesla Belgrade Airport to counter fraud
Signed by: Head of the Federal Customs Service Vladimir Bulavin and Director of the Customs Administration of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Serbia Milos
Supplementary Agreement to the Contract between Serbian Railways Infrastructure and RZD International on the design and construction of railway infrastructure in the Republic of Serbia as well as modernisation and renovation of signalling, centralisation and blocking systems, communication and telecommunications with establishing a Central Dispatch Centre for trains in the Republic of Serbia
Signed by: General Director of RZD International Sergei Pavlov and Acting Director General of Serbian Railways Infrastructure Miroljub Jevtic
Aleksandar Vucic and Dmitry Medvdev’s statement for the press following Russia-Serbia talks
Excerpts from the transcript:
Aleksandar Vucic (via interpreter): Mr Prime Minister of the Government of the Russian Federation, dear friend Dmitry Medvedev,
Thank you very much for you being in Belgrade today.
The main thing I would like to say is that it is a great honour for us that you are celebrating the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Belgrade with us, 75 years since the moment when the Red Army and Serbian partisans entered the city together, liberating it from the Nazis. I am proud to stress the fact that as peoples who suffered terrible losses during World War II, today we represent a force that is fighting the falsification of history, an alternative interpretation of what really happened during the Second World War.
Your visit to Belgrade, to Serbia is evidence that we will not let history be rewritten. And we will always pay our deepest respect to our Russian and Serbian heroes. Serbia’s heroes liberated Serbia and the former Yugoslavia while Russia’s liberated all of Europe.
I would like to say that Serbia and Russia have exceptionally friendly relations. This may seem like old news to some, but I would like to say something more about our ties. I believe I can say, after my numerous meetings with President Putin and Prime Minister Medvedev, that over a period of the past decades our top-level relations were noted for sincere trust, respect and understanding of each other’s positions, which is of vital significance for us. Serbia is a younger partner in these ties, but we can always rely on Russia’s support and assistance, primarily when it comes to our political relations.
We are developing our cooperation so as to be able to help each other at international structures and organisations. We always try to understand each other. We are grateful to our Russian friends – Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin – for finding time for contacts, for listening to us and for showing understanding for Serbia’s difficult political position.
One of the most important, or even the most important subject, which we invariably discuss and which cannot be separated from politics, is our economic relations. Our trade is growing every year. It reached $3.06 billion in 2018, an increase of 18.6 percent from $2.58 billion the year before. Our trade is growing in all spheres. I believe that we will develop digital technology, software and the internet, thanks to the efforts of Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic. Both of them have been working on these matters very energetically.
The agreement that will be signed in Moscow in a few days from now is very important for us. I would like to express gratitude to the Russian Federation for it. The people must know that it sells out many more jobs for them. Russians will be able to taste Vinjak, because we will deliver 90,000 litres of this Serbian brandy. I am always very serious about this, and Russians can appreciate it. You will see that many people in Serbia will be better off thanks to this, not to mention other Serbian exports. We are grateful to our friends for giving over part of their market to Serbian products, and we are ready to do the same for Russian imports.
Our trade in the first eight months of 2019 totalled $2.181 billion, more than in 2018. You can see that our trade is developing excellently.
I would like to say a few words about agriculture. The largest part of our agricultural exports, worth $350 million, goes to Russia. This is really so. Therefore, our rural residents, our farmers can really feel the benefits of our cooperation with Russia.
Today we attended a demonstration of Serbia’s military and combat capability. We showed only a part of our arsenal, but I am deeply grateful to Prime Minister Medvedev for noticing the big improvement in our combat operational capability over the past few years. I am proud of the Serbian Army; it is a far cry from what it was several years ago. Thanks to your support and assistance, as well as to Serbia’s investments and economic progress, we have increased our air force from one MiG-29 to 14 such fighter planes, and we have found a way of buying 19 new helicopters this year. We did not buy a single helicopter in the preceding 45 years. I am talking about heavy-lift helicopters.
I believe this shows how fast Serbia is developing. We would not have been able to do this without your support. Thank you very much for this. Besides, you know that we always behave in a responsible and serious manner, and that we never threaten anyone. We are only doing this to reinforce our position, so that we will be able to protect our nation, our skies and our people. Thank you for this.
We are interested in continuing our cooperation in all other spheres, including in social matters. I can proudly report that our museum will display the 166th page of Miroslav’s Gospel, which will be delivered from St Petersburg. The project was launched long ago, but I believe that very soon we will be able to see exhibitions from the Russian Museum, the Tretyakov Gallery and, I hope, the Hermitage; the talks regarding this are already underway. We will be working on this.
There are very many fields for our cooperation. I am grateful to our Russian friends for their support and assistance, for regarding us as their equals and friends, just as we regard them. Mr Medvedev, our dear and respected friend, we are grateful to you personally. Thank you for agreeing to this packed agenda. Thank you for your sincere friendship and for your sincere support to Serbia. Serbian people appreciate this. I would like to ask you to convey our regards to President Putin. I look forward to having my 17th meeting with him in Sochi on 4 December.
Once again, welcome to Serbia, which is celebrating the liberation of Belgrade, our capital, together with you. Thank you once again for helping us in that most difficult operation in 1944. And thank you for the assistance and support you provide to us today.
Dmitry Medvedev: Mr President, my dear friend; colleagues, media representatives,
I am delighted to be spending this day among friends. This is a special day, the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Belgrade. Today, there are not so many countries, which we – at least we in Russia – can describe as our friends, and not just friends but friends who assess history in the same way as we do.
After all, history is a controversial thing. And people are fond of rewriting our history. At times, this takes on rather disgusting forms, particularly when this concerns events that should not be debated at all. No one is against science, historical science. No one, moreover, is against different points of view. But there are really dark pages, and there are bright pages. And this must not be subject to political horse-trading or manipulation. This fully applies to such events as the liberation of Belgrade, the Victory in WWII and, most importantly, the appraisal of the sacrifices that had to be made on the altar of liberation of our countries and our peoples.
I am not idealising the state. The state, as we were taught once, is just a superstructure. It is the peoples that are the true makers of history. Seventy-five years ago, these peoples defeated Nazism and delivered Europe from what by that time was a reality – death camps, executions, slavery… This page of history is increasingly receding into the past, something that attaches even more value to the events and meetings of this kind. And we are bearing increasingly more responsibility for the preservation of historical truth.
When I was laying wreaths to the monuments earlier today, I saw young people, who came here from Russia, and I saw young Serbs… What I would like to say is that it is very important for the young to realise how valuable peace is and how much our ancestors did to enable it to come to our land.
It is owing to this that we are standing in this room and discussing vital problems. And we are discussing them as equal partners – I said as much as I was addressing the Skupshtina today. I talked about this with the Prime Minister, Ms Ana Brnabic. Our job is to make these relations maximally trust-based and yet absolutely pragmatic. This is the main thing. If they are pragmatic, they will have a future. But if we try to use some ideological clichés, these relations, more likely than not, will deteriorate. Pragmatism-based friendship, as I think, is our motto for the future.
There are results, too. Our colleagues have just demonstrated them. There are major companies operating in Serbia and accounting for much of its budget revenue. I am referring to such companies as the Naftna Industrija Srbije (Petroleum Industry of Serbia). There are smaller companies as well, but their contribution to common development is no less valuable.
Today, we were talking about energy projects. It
is clear that we will continue to promote them, the more so that quite a
sizeable amount of money has been invested. This refers to both the oil
industry and the gas industry. We are expecting the launch of the Turkish
Stream; we have discussed this today. As I understand, this is always a matter
of interest for the media community. I am confident that this project will
work. There are some relatively small amounts of work to be completed. On the
whole, this project will create many new jobs and, most importantly, will bring
considerable profits, including to our friends in Serbia.
The signed documents indicate that the economic development in your country has reached a new level. Because we are not simply talking about creating a company – we are talking about developing infrastructure. The portfolio of railway-related documents is a portfolio of infrastructure documents. This sector is the heart of the economy. If it does not work, nothing works. We have just witnessed the signing of serious documents regarding major railway operations.
Another project, which supervised by Rosatom, is the Centre for Nuclear Science, Technology and Innovation. This project is, in a manner of speaking, a glimpse into the future. And those are not just some abstract nuclear technologies from textbooks. Those are very specific applications, including medicine and medical research. It is about the well-being of the people. In addition to this, my distinguished friends, it is trust-based cooperation. If we sign agreements of this kind it means we trust each other, which is particularly valuable.
Mr President spoke about agriculture. I have also mentioned it today. Perhaps, this industry has gained most from the anti-Russian sanctions and Russia’s response measures. Our agricultural industry representatives should be happy because we communicate and engage in mutual trade. Serbia has increased the amount of its agricultural exports to our country. And perhaps this is a good thing. We are trying not to look too far ahead but I think here we already have a solid foundation for further development.
There are a great number of good humanitarian projects, information and cultural centres. Perhaps, chapter 166 of the Miroslav’s Gospel is of particular importance because it is indeed a holy relic for Serbians. We are glad that there is finally an agreement on such a sensitive issue. Let’s face it, such matters are very hard to negotiate. One of Nicholas Roerich’s paintings, highly valued by Russia, will be returned to us. These are also steps of partnership and friendship.
Mr President said that our level of mutual understanding is unprecedented. I agree with that. The most important thing is not to squander it. It is only possible not to squander it only if we assess an entire range of international events from similar perspectives. I do not want to elaborate much on the Kosovo problem. You know Russia’s stand on it. It is completely based on UNSC Resolution No. 1244 and the fact that we have always told our Serbian friends: we proceed from the premise of full support of Serbia in the matter of its sovereignty and territorial integrity. And we will continue to do so.
We work very closely together at various platforms. We accept our Serbian friends’ decisions regarding the European integration project. The most important thing is to think about what I have just mentioned: these decisions must be for the betterment of the peoples of the Republic of Serbia and the Russian Federation. Then there will be no limitations on our relations and they will indeed be in congruence with the high level of the 21st century.
Once again, thank you for the invitation to attend the 75th anniversary of Belgrade liberation at this wonderful time.
