At the very beginning of the meeting, Bacevac said that the PFG with Turkey is one of the largest, comprised of almost a quarter of the total number of MPs in the Assembly. Bacevac pointed out that Serbia is very interested in Turkey, taking the opportunity to thank Turkey for helping Novi Pazar, indeed the entire country in general, in medical equipment during the ongoing pandemic.

The Ambassador expressed regret that the meeting was organised at the end of his mandate in Serbia, but that the situation cause by the pandemic did not allow for an earlier meeting. Saying that the number of patients is growing again, the Ambassador expressed hope that the vaccines at Serbia’s disposal would help prevent any problems. He pointed out that the relations between the two countries have progressed at the diplomatic level, adding that parliamentary relations are not lagging behind either, whose strengthening was mostly helped by the efforts of the National Assembly’s Parliamentary Friendship Group and Foreign Affairs Committee. The Ambassador added that the Turkish Parliament’s Friendship Group with Serbia comprises deputies from Sandzak, and that, as soon as the opportunity arises, a meeting of members of the two friendship groups should be organised, because as he said, MPs often become ministers.

Bacevac opined that the economic cooperation between the two countries has never been better and has actually reached a historical maximum, with the number of 100,000 tourists from Turkey visiting Serbia greatly contributing to it. Bacevac mentioned that cultural cooperation could be better, saying that the Turkish language has been studied at the University of Belgrade since the 1960s. He added that it would be good to translate the works of contemporary writers from both countries, because the tradition and mentality of the two peoples are so intertwined that it hardly needs mentioning. He expressed hope that Turkey would open a consulate in Novi Pazar and once again listed the projects in Novi Pazar realised with Turkey’s help, such as the reconstruction of the Novi Pazar-Tutin road, construction of a sports hall, the renovation of the gynaecology department at the General Hospital, as well as the help provided to the Belgrade Clinical Centre.

The officials agreed that cooperation has greatly advanced in the past four years, thanks to the presidents of the two countries and their friendly relations, and that bringing the two nations closer together was the most important achievement. They expressed confidence that the cooperation between the two countries will continue in all areas and reach the level of strategic cooperation.