EU membership remains Serbia’s priority, says PM Aleksandar Vucic

Serbia is a country with deep roots in the past and since the early 19th century has been involved in many conflicts in the volatile region.

Now the nation has its sights set firmly on the future and in particular membership of the European Union. “We are doing our best to stay firmly on our EU path and to fulfil all our obligations,” Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic tells euronews’ Isabelle Kumar in this edition of Global Conversation. He reveals the political priorities for his country in its bid to join the bloc.

“I think we have really achieved a lot, although it was not an easy question for us. It was a very hard, very difficult issue for us, but we carried on with the dialogue with Kosovo Albanians,” explains the prime minister on building sustainable relations with Kosovo.But Serbia’s past and its relations with Kosovo remain at times a haunting shadow.

Creating business opportunities within the country and stopping the brightest and best leaving Serbia is also a priority.

“The best way to fight it is to secure a better business environment in this country to change the economic perspectives to give that kind of hope to our people and that’s what we are doing.,” he says referring to the “brain drain”.

Aleksandar Vucic also talks about his time as minister for information under Slobodan Milosevic, relationships with Russia and the economic growth in Serbia.

Of his premiership he says, “I am always doing my best to criticize myself and self-criticism is something that I live with. “