The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, spoke at a press conference after the meeting with the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, and explained the details of the meeting and the contracts that were signed.
At the beginning of the press conference, Vučić said that the conversation was long.
“We had long talks and we will continue them late into the night. About all important strategic issues, both bilateral cooperation and our path to the EU and strategic relations in the world and Europe. I thanked him for the support that France provides on Serbia’s European path, but I am grateful for the increasing investments and the increasing cooperation we have in different spheres of life,” said Vučić.
One of the issues discussed was nuclear energy.
“Serbia will not have enough electricity in 10 years if it does not use nuclear energy. Many EU countries are getting involved and are learning from the French example. They have 70 percent of their energy through nuclear reactors. This is about clean energy,” the President of Serbia emphasized.
After that, he referred to the most important part of the meeting.
“The big news is the purchase of Rafale planes. You will see, we will be completely open. The contract was signed with a logistics package. From spare engines to everything else. The total value is 2.7 billion euros. Twelve brand new planes will be owned by Serbia. That is great news and will contribute to a significant increase in the operational capabilities of our army. We thank Macron for allowing us to buy new Rafales. We believe in the good cooperation of our armies in the year 2024 and 2025 15 percent from the budget, 421 million euros each. We will not increase the share of public debt in Serbia’s GDP,” he said.
Finally, Vučić said that they also discussed the situation in Europe and the region.
“I am not ashamed, unlike the majority, to speak openly and honestly with Macron. He is one of the people who is able to hear a different opinion and I think it is important for us to reach peace as soon as possible. I expressed my wish that the situation in the region be completely stable and secure. I believe that we will have significant support from France in that regard as well,” concluded Vučić, Klix.ba writes.
