Serbia to further improve relations with US, Azerbaijan: President

By Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic Thursday expressed a desire to further develop relations with both the US and Azerbaijan.

Vucic's remarks came after separate meetings with US Senators Chris Murphy and Gary Peters, and Azerbaijan National Assembly speaker Sahiba Gafarova in the capital Belgrade.

“I reiterated Serbia's commitment to continue developing relations with the US on the basis of mutual respect and understanding,” said Vucic on social media.

Vucic also thanked the officials for supporting the dialogue process for the normalization of relations with Kosovo.

"I pointed out that the formation of the Community of Serbian Municipalities is a priority ...," said Vucic.

After the meeting with Gafarova, Vucic said they discussed bilateral relations and economic cooperation.

Serbia is determined to further improve relations with friendly Azerbaijan, said Vucic.

- Community of Serbian Municipalities

Serbia considers Kosovo, which declared its independence unilaterally in 2008, as its territory.

Serbia and Kosovo are trying to find a common way for the normalization of relations and eventually for the two countries to recognize each other through the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue Process, which was initiated in 2011 under the mediation of the EU.

The agreement on the establishment of the Community of Serbian Municipalities in the municipalities where most Serbs live in Kosovo was signed between Kosovo and Serbia in 2013 under the mediation of the EU, but could not be put into practice.

The Serbian and Kosovo leaders, who last met in Brussels on May 2, announced that they could not reach an agreement on the Community of Serbian Municipalities.