Prof. Dr Vladimir Marinkovic welcomed the Ambassador of the State of Qatar, emphasising the importance of frequent meetings for the improvement of economic relations, as well as Serbia’s openness for all types of investment. Marinkovic said that Serbia would like to raise its level of cooperation with Qatar to the one it enjoys with Azerbaijan. “We would like to see our cooperation become more concrete because Serbia is a country that strives for fast development and EU accession is its strategic goal. Serbia is well aware of Qatar’s excellent foreign economy and we would very much like to bring Qatar companies to invest into our country”. Marinkovic also added that close cooperation between the two countries could boost both Serbia and Qatar’s potentials.

H.E. Sheikh Mubarak bin Fahad Al-Thani thanked the National Assembly Deputy Speaker for the invitation, saying he had written to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Qatar to urge for the establishment of a Parliamentary Friendship Group with Serbia and adding that he also hoped there would be personal visits of the members of the parliamentary friendship groups. He said that the preparations for the signing of the agreement on economic, trade and technical cooperation have entered the final stage, and there is a possibility to sign a cooperation agreement between the foreign ministries. The Ambassador added that Serbia has considerable agricultural potentials which is another venue for cooperation, and that there are already some globally active Qatari companies interested in investing into Serbia.

Marinkovic said he was sure that all the agreements the two countries sign would be ratified by the National Assembly, and that agriculture could be one of the pillars of cooperation between the two countries.

The officials also spoke about organising a culture week next year, concluding that they would do their best to intensify cooperation between the two countries.