The Kremlin has designated Serbia as a "friendly country" after Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic earlier today agreed with Russian President Vladimir Putin on a new three-month extension of gas supplies, BTA reports.
This became clear from the statement of Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov after the conversation between Vucic and Putin.
“I can only confirm that one of the conversations (of Putin) was with Vucic“, the Kremlin spokesman told the Russian agency TASS, refusing to provide details of the conversation.
“We are particularly committed to our obligations to friendly and fraternal countries such as Serbia“, the Kremlin spokesman emphasized.
The current contract for Russian gas supplies expires tomorrow, March 31, and according to the previously stated expectations of the Serbian side, the contract was supposed to be extended by half a year, Serbian media recall.
Russian gas covers up to 90 percent of the country's domestic consumption, despite Belgrade's stated efforts to diversify energy sources, Reuters agency notes.
Today, Vucic stressed that Serbia, which is a candidate for EU membership, is working to increase supplies from Azerbaijan and access to liquefied natural gas through terminals in Greece, as well as to participate in the EU's initiative for joint gas purchases, with the aim of securing about 20 percent of its needs outside of Russian supplies, the agency reported.
Ten days ago, the Serbian president met in Belgrade with Russian Economy Minister Maxim Reshetnikov.
In mid-February, the minister without portfolio responsible for international economic cooperation in the Serbian government, Nenad Popovic, told the TANJUG agency that he had held a conversation in Russia with Minister Reshetnikov and received confirmation that Serbia would have the most favorable gas price and sufficient gas quantities until the end of 2026. year.
Later today, Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric held meetings with the ambassadors of Russia and Belarus accredited in Belgrade, during which bilateral relations, the regional situation and current geopolitical issues were discussed, the TANYUG agency reported.
Djuric discussed with Ambassador Aleksandar Botsan-Kharchenko and Ambassador Sergey Malinovski the most important aspects of Serbia's relations with Russia and Belarus, as well as the political and economic situation in the Western Balkans region, and also discussed current global issues in light of the current geopolitical situation, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.