This was the first visit of a Serbian minister since the appointment of the government in May this year.

The ministers discussed the possibilities of further development of bilateral political

and economic relations. They also discussed regional cooperation and relations in the Western Balkans region. "Serbia is an important partner of ours in the Western Balkans region and is also one of the priority countries for Czech transition cooperation. In Serbia, we are working on projects aimed primarily at civil society, independent media and human rights," Minister Lipavský summarised at the beginning of the meeting.

Another important topic was the EU enlargement process. "I assured Minister Đurić that the Czechia fully supports the Serbian government in its efforts to make progress in the accession negotiations. The constructive continuation of the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina is part of the accession process," the Czech diplomatic chief said.

An important topic was the discussion on the international community's response to Russia's aggression against Ukraine. "Both our countries took part in the peace summit in Switzerland, where they joined the Joint Declaration. Any peace on Ukraine must be discussed with Ukraine, there is no train running over it," Minister Lipavský stressed.