The Vice President of India, M. Venkaiah Naidu has said that India and Serbia have historic and special relations as co-founders of the Non-Aligned Movement and our relationship is based on mutual trust, mutual understanding and support to each other on issues of core interest. He was making a press statement after holding delegation level talks with the President of Serbia, Mr. Aleksandar Vucic at Serbia Place, in Belgrade, Serbia today. The Minister of State for Finance, Shri Shiv Pratap Shukla, the Ambassador of India to Serbia, Shri Subrata Bhattacharjee and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.The Vice President said that India and Serbia have historic and special relations as co-founders of the Non-Aligned Movement and our relationship is based on mutual trust, mutual understanding and support to each other on issues of core interest. He further said that we agreed to expand the bilateral cooperation especially in the areas of economic and cultural relations. India and Serbia are on the path of economic reforms to realize the goal of socio-economic development of our peoples, he added.
The Vice President along with the Serbian President has witnessed the signing of MoUs between India and Serbia on cooperation in the fields of Plant Health and Plant Quarantine and a revised Air Services. Addressing on this occasion, the Vice President said that these agreements will contribute to further enhancing bilateral economic ties between India and Serbia.Both leaders have jointly released the Commemorative Stamps on two great personalities, Swami Vivekananda, the great Philosopher from India and Nikola Tesla, the great scientist from Serbia to commemorate 70 years of diplomatic relations between India and Serbia. The Vice President along with the Serbian President also visited the Exhibition on ‘Belgrade/New Delhi – 70 years of Diplomatic Relations’.The Vice President and the Serbian President have gave a joint Press Statement. Later, both the leaders have addressed the India-Serbia Business Forum Meeting.The Vice President thanked the President of Serbia for extending invitation to visit Serbia and for hosting in his beautiful country. We appreciate your inspiring leadership of Serbia and your constructive role in the region, he added.The Vice President congratulated the President of Serbia for the success of economic reforms undertaken by the Serbian Government which have resulted in significant improvement in the economic situation and business environment of Serbia.
The Vice President said that today India is one of the fastest growing major economies in the world and Serbian companies can take advantage of the favourable trade and investment environment as well as major policy initiatives like Make in India, Smart cities, Digital India, Start-up India, etc. by participating in these programmes in Business to Business mode including Joint Ventures. He further said that there is huge scope to promote collaboration in sectors like agriculture and food processing, science & technology, IT & Electronics, pharmaceuticals, education and tourism. Agriculture holds enormous significance for the development and food security of both our countries, he added.The Vice President said that India is one of the largest global manufacturers of generic medicines and with the new Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Policy, India has the potential to become the largest drug manufacturer and exporter in the world, including in the East European region. Both sides can collaborate for enhancing export of Indian generic drugs to Serbia and this enhance availability of quality medicines to the people at affordable prices, he added.The Vice President noted with great appreciation the growing interest and increasing popularity of Indian culture, especially in Yoga, Ayurveda and Homeopathy in Serbia. Signing of agreement on cooperation in the fields of culture, sports, youth and mass media signed between the two countries earlier this year was an important step to further promote cultural interaction between the two countries, he added. The Vice President said that Terrorism is the most serious global threat in today’s world. He further said that this can only be defeated by coordinated international action. There is an urgent need to expedite the finalization of the draft Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism, mooted by India in 1996, he added.