In a telephone conversation, Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić on his convincing victory in the presidential elections and on the important victory of the SNS in the parliamentary elections.
He took the opportunity to wish President Vučić luck and success in his responsible position as head of state and for Serbia’s progress in the next five years, with the conviction that Serbia and Russia will preserve truly friendly relations.
A press release said that President Vučić thanked him for the congratulations and said that the Republic of Serbia will continue to pursue its policy of a European direction while preserving its sincere and traditional friendly relations with the Russian Federation.
The two presidents analysed the economic situation and bilateral relations in the field of energy and trade, which grew in 2021 and the first two months of 2022, a good sign of our successful cooperation.
President Vučić informed President Putin about the difficulties that Serbia faces when importing crude oil and expressed confidence that the leadership of Gazprom Neft and the Republic of Serbia, as well as their partners in the EU, will find a way out of the situation.
At the same time, Presidents Vučić and Putin noted that Serbia’s long-term gas contract expires on 31 May this year, and that it is necessary to start talks on the price, quantities and other conditions of procurement of this important energy source for Serbia as soon as possible.
Finally, President Putin informed President Vučić about events in Ukraine and the reasons why Russia was conducting, as President Putin put it, operations in Ukraine. President Vučić referred to Serbia’s position that is already well-known to President Putin and the conclusions of the National Security Council, expressing hope that the conflict in Ukraine will end in the shortest time possible.