Meeting with Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia Aleksandar Vulin

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov Lavrov SergeiMinister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federationand Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov Ushakov YuryAide to the Presidenttook part in the talks.

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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr Vulin, I am delighted to welcome you to Vladivostok and to Russia.

I hope that your business mission here will be both successful and useful, particularly in terms of carrying out a careful review and assessing cooperation opportunities with Russia's Far East, a vast region that holds immense potential and promise.

We have so many guests from a wide range of countries here, representing companies of all kinds and from across the world, including Asia and Europe. I believe that in addition to taking part in informal debates and official events, you can also engage with your colleagues from other countries. This is what makes events of this kind so valuable, among other things.

As for our bilateral relations, it is widely known what they represent. I am referring to the deep-rooted relations, their historical roots and the spiritual affinity between the people of Russia, the Russian nation and the Serbian nation.

Unfortunately, in terms of our trade and economic ties, trade has been declining, albeit slightly. I am aware that you and your cabinet are working on these matters. Perhaps it is time to hold an intergovernmental commission meeting in order to review the obstacles we face in this regard and remove them. Moreover, we have so many interesting avenues for cooperation in manufacturing, transport and industrial cooperation.

As you know, Russia plays a crucial role in supplying Serbia with energy resources, doing so efficiently and at a high level, always in a timely manner and on favourable terms for Serbia. This is something we will also discuss. There are specific issues we must address in this regard. For example, I am referring to the fact that our gas supply deals are set to expire in March 2025.

Of course, we are looking forward to hearing your assessment of what has been happening in your region from a security perspective and in terms of fulfilling the existing international agreements, particularly the Dayton Agreement. It would be very interesting and useful to hear your perspective and assessments on all these matters.

Welcome.

To be continued.

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