Gojkovic said that Serbia is proud of its 125-year history of membership in the Inter-Parliamentary Union, noting that it was one of the first organisations Serbia joined.

The National Assembly Speaker emphasised the importance of dialogue between national parliaments, especially in view of the importance of debate in the IPU and the global challenges such as terrorism, migration, economic crisis, climate change. Gojkovic stressed that because of the significance of the IPU and parliamentary dialogue, the National Assembly delegation would continue to take active part in the organisation’s work in both plenary sessions and other activities.

The National Assembly Speaker also thanked the organisation for its principled respect of Serbia’s position, as IPU member, i.e. its territorial integrity and sovereignty.

Chowdhury was grateful for the opportunity to visit Serbia on the 125th anniversary of its membership in the Inter-Parliamentary Union, stressing that he looks forward to future cooperation.

“As we assess the history of our cooperation and parliamentary relations, this is also the moment to look to the future and the challenges we face. These challenges are common –climate change, education and healthcare issues, terrorism, migration. We are aware how quickly the world changes, and the parliament is a system which should be stable, one we can rely on”, said Chowdhury, stressing that today, parliamentary dialogue is more important than ever.

He said that the Serbian citizens can be proud of their parliament which leads not only in the legislative sense, its basic role, but also by its involvement in the IPU, significantly contributes to the institution’s work.

He said that the Inter-Parliamentary Union was founded in 1889, before the United Nations and the League of Nations, and is the first international multilateral initiative and key initiator of fostering ties between national parliaments.

Chowdhury reminded that Serbia became an IPU member at its very beginning of operation in 1891, so in a way the history of the IPU overlaps with the history of the Serbian Parliament.