Serbia to host Non-Aligned Movement Summit on Monday

By Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) - Serbia is set to host the Non-Aligned Movement Summit, starting on Monday.

Participants have started arriving in the capital Belgrade, where the two-day event will take place, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on social media on Sunday.

Belgrade, then the capital of Yugoslavia, had hosted a summit of the movement once before in 1961. On Monday, it will once again gather the representatives of more than 100 countries 60 years later.

"Non-aligned people gathered in Belgrade 60 years ago. Today is the day to re-show the meaning of independence and joint action," added Vucic.

The Non-Aligned Movement was established during the era of decolonization by numerous developing countries, many of which had recently won their independence, that did not want to opt for one or other military-political blocs of the Cold War and instead chose to pursue an independent foreign policy.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also arrived on Sunday to participate in the event.

"In Belgrade to attend as a special guest to the high-level commemorative meeting for 60th anniversary of the Non-Aligned Movement and hold bilaterals," said Cavusoglu on social media.

The most recent summit was hosted by Azerbaijan in 2019 in the capital Baku. The movement today has 120 members.