Minister Vesna Pusić attended informal meeting of SEECP foreign ministers in Belgrade

The meeting, opened by Serbian President Boris Tadić and chaired by Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremić, focused on relations between the countries in the region, outstanding issues, and progress of the Southeast European countries in Euro-Atlantic integration

"Source: FaH/Tanjug/Zoran Zestic"

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Vesna Pusić attended 31 January 2012 in Belgrade an informal meeting of foreign ministers of the South-East European Cooperation Process (SEECP), held as part of Serbia’s presiding of this regional initiative.

The meeting, opened by Serbian President Boris Tadić and chaired by Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremić, focused on relations between the countries in the region, outstanding issues, and progress of the Southeast European countries in Euro-Atlantic integration.

All of the SEECP participants congratulated Croatia on signing the Accession Treaty and completing the final steps towards EU membership. In her address, Pusić stressed the importance of the referendum held 22 January, whose outcome showed that the Croatian citizens have recognized the strategic interest in joining the EU. She pointed out that Croatia, as a future EU member, had a new responsibility in terms of inciting and facilitating the Euro-integration processes in the countries of the region. The minister emphasized that political messages to those countries needed to be positive and that high criteria need to be maintained in the accession process.

During her stay in Belgrade, Pusić was received by Serbian President Boris Tadić.

On the fringes of the SEECP meeting, Pusić met with foreign ministers of Serbia Vuk Jeremić, Turkey Ahmet Davutoğlu, and Greece Stavros Dimas.

While staying in Belgrade, Pusić also met with representatives of the Croatian minority – President of the Croatian National Council Slaven Bačić, President of the Democratic Alliance of Croats in Vojvodina Petar Kuntić, and Director of Vojvodina Croats' Cultural Institute Tomislav Žigmanov.

She also met with leader of the Liberal Democratic Party Čedomir Jovanović, historian Latinka Perović, chairwoman of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia Sonja Biserko, and Dean of the Faculty of Political Sciences Ilija Vujačić.

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