Addressing the Danube parliamentarians, Gojkovic pointed out that the exchange of experiences among the countries of the Danube region, especially those relating to transport infrastructure, flood prevention and defence and development of economic cooperation in the region, is very important for the establishment of even better relations between the countries the Danube flows through. Gojkovic reminded that the floods that struck Serbia and the region in May 2014 proved the need for cooperation and the drafting and realisation of joint anti-flooding projects.

Gojkovic emphasised the importance of the projects conducted within the Danube Strategy such as the reconstruction of Zezelj Bridge worth 45 million EUR, revitalisation of the Golubac Fortress worth 6.5 million EUR, construction of the water supply system for Veliko Gradiste worth 4.4 million EUR, construction of the bimodal terminal in Batajnica and other.

The National Assembly Speaker said these projects show how important the Danube region is not just for the transportation of people and goods, but also as a bridge between nations and a way to foster cultural and economic ties, which is why parliamentarians should play an active role in the creation of projects and the Danube Strategy.

“As representatives of our citizens and the region, and in our legislative and supervisory role, we have to simultaneously work on supporting, legitimacy and realisation of the Danube Strategy, exchanging best practice and stimulating all the levels of governance to take active part”, stressed Gojkovic.

The National Assembly Speaker also pointed out that, as an EU candidate country, Serbia is strategically turned toward the European Union.

“I would like to stress that it is general consensus that our administration, along with the colleagues from the European Commission, had successfully completed the screening process for all the negotiation chapters. Screening was completed in March and we now await the opening of the negotiation chapters. We hope to begin the negotiations process by the end of the year and are fully prepared for it”, said Gojkovic.

Gojkovic said that the current National Assembly legislature fully supports Serbia’s EU accession which is a clear indicator of the people’s strong commitment to conduct the reforms necessary to speed up European integration and ensure economic development and better standard of living for the citizens.