"EU needs Serbia more than Serbia needs EU," Orban says after meeting with Vucic

Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban arrived on Friday in Serbia for an official visit, during which he met with President Aleksandar Vucic.

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The meeting between the president of Serbia and the prime minister of Hungary was held at the Presidency in Belgrade, while Serbian Minister of Finance Sinisa Mali and Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Peter Szijjarto also held a meeting.

"This year, already in the first quarter, although we were faced with an epidemic, we had a growth of 8 percent in our trade with Hungary. They are our third trading partner, slowly approaching our second trading partner. I am especially grateful to Prime Minister Orban for pointing out that they are interested in investing in our country. It has been announced that a Hungarian company would come to Arilje, which was unexpected. We are grateful to them for their support on our European path," President Vucic said after the talks.

"I informed Orban about the situation in the region and everything that is happening in Kosovo, and otherwise in the region. Although they have recognized Kosovo's independence, Hungary always understands Serbia. I must say that no one has understood Serbia as well as the Hungarians on the issue of national importance for us. A portion of the meeting was dedicated to developing cooperation in the field of culture and sports. Today, we will visit the National Museum of Serbia," Vucic pointed out.

After the meeting, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that "without Serbia, the Balkans cannot be stable" and that the entire region can be stabilized only through good neighborly relations.

"When a decision is made on whether Serbia should be admitted to the European Union, it can count on the vote of Hungary," he stressed, responding to reporters' questions.

He said that during the coronavirus epidemic, everyone could see that the EU does not have a common policy in the field of health, but, he pointed out, he expects the EU to be more successful in that matter in the second phase of the fight against the virus.

Photo: Tanjug/Dragan Kujundzic

"In the first phase of the fight against the virus, we could not count on the support of the EU, we saw that all EU members were busy with their own problems and coordination did not work. In the second phase, we expect the EU to be in a better position and more successful in the fight against Covid-19," said Orban, in response to a Hungarian journalist who asked him to comment on Hungary's cooperation with the EU, but also with the countries of the East during the epidemic.

Orban pointed out that 120 planes came to Hungary from China carrying medical equipment.

"We formed an air bridge with China, 120 cargoes arrived, so we have enough materials during the epidemic. Also, we have supplies to help others, but also for our own needs in the fall, if there is another wave of the epidemic in October," said the Hungarian prime minister and added that Hungary has good regional cooperation with neighboring countries, with whom Budapest was constantly in touch.

(Telegraf.rs)