Statement by President von der Leyen at the joint press conference with Serbian President Vučić

Mr President, dear Aleksandar,

Thank you very much for hosting me again here in Belgrade. It is a real pleasure to be back. The partnership between the European Union and Serbia is getting stronger. As you said already, we are already Serbia's number one trading partner and investor. In this context, I want to congratulate Serbia for having reached for the first time an investment grade level by Standard & Poor's. This is a big achievement. You already reported on what we discussed. I want to shed a light on three initiatives that you have mentioned, but I wanted to deep dive a bit more.

The first one is our Growth Plan for the Western Balkans. As you know, it is designed to bring the region's economies closer to ours and to gradually integrate the regional market here with our European Single Market. The principle is very simple: We open the door of the European Single Market in specific sectors to Serbian companies. For that, in return, we need some reforms to have a level playing field for both sides. And these reforms are supported by additional investment from the European Union. It has now been a year since we started, and most Western Balkan countries have their reform agenda ready, so does Serbia. Dear Aleksandar, I want to thank you and your team who have done such a great job on your excellent reform agenda. Now we should be able to start with a pre-financing of EUR 110 million by the end of this year. Then of course, overall, Serbia will receive EUR 1.5 billion under the Growth Plan. The Plan will deliver very concrete results. For example, you are on a good track to become part of the Single Euro Payments Area as of next year. It means that transfers of money between Serbia and the European Union will be faster, more secure and free. It will benefit of course both citizens and businesses.

The second initiative I want to speak about is our groundbreaking partnership on e-mobility and critical raw materials. I want to congratulate you also on your action to enable Serbia to become a leader in the batteries and electric vehicle industries. These are the industries of tomorrow. And we are here to support you every step of the way. We will work together on ambitious projects that will create good jobs and growth, right here in Serbia. For example, we estimate that our partnership could help create 20,000 jobs and add EUR 6 billion annually to your GDP. In other words: This is wealth created here in Serbia and it will remain in Serbia and benefit the whole country. And when we work together on raw materials projects, you can be fully assured that we will respect and preserve your beautiful nature and that we will always listen and cooperate with local communities. Because this is the standard of how we are doing it in the European Union. And since you are a future member, of course we will do the same together here. It is a prosperous and sustainable common future for the next generations that we are working on together.

The third initiative I want to look at is our Investment Plan for the Western Balkans. It has been launched four years ago, and it is delivering steadily. In Serbia, the Investment Plan has already mobilised almost EUR 5 billion of investment. We are working on major projects focused mainly on clean energy and the digital transitions. And indeed, during our visit today at the company HTEC, it was very impressive to see the results of this digital transition in action. There is another example, that is the wind farm we are building in Kostolac, in Eastern Serbia. This project could produce the equivalent of the energy demand of 45,000 homes. We are also renovating the Vlasina hydropower system. And we are working on several power lines along the Trans-Balkan Power Corridor. In other words: This will connect the electricity systems of Serbia, Montenegro, and Bosnia and Herzegovina with the European Union Member States. Finally, we are investing together in clean transport for better connectivity across the region and with Europe. We have several very interesting projects ongoing on Railway Corridor X – including the one we launched together three years ago, in Niš. Indeed, I remember that very well, dear Aleksandar, and it is delivering.

As you can see, these initiatives form a very solid foundation for Serbia's path towards the European Union. Europe remains strongly committed to the European future of Serbia. In times of conflicts, wars and turmoil, being a member of the European Union is a promise of peace and prosperity. And it is a promise that we can deliver together. Serbia is already one of the most advanced countries in the accession process. You have shown that you can meet the necessary benchmarks. You have committed to delivering on reforms, in particular on the fundamentals, as you just said, of rule of law and democracy. And you have shown that deeds follow your words. It is in this spirit that we are working together on the opening of the Cluster 3. In particular, I also want to commend your humanitarian assistance and your financial support to Ukraine. So we do a lot of good work together. I am looking forward to continuing with you down this path. And thank you very much again for hosting me here Mr President, dear Aleksandar.