Cooperation with UN important to reform process in Serbia

BELGRADE - Serbian Defense Minister Bratislav Gasic said during a meeting he has had with Head of the United Nations (UN) Office in Belgrade Peter Due in Belgrade that the cooperation between the Defense Ministry and the UN is very important to the continuation of Serbia's reform process and progress in European integration.

The defence minister also stressed the importance of UNMIK's and KFOR's presence in Kosovo, stressing that the international forces are the main guarantor of security there, the Ministry of Defense said in a release on Monday.

Gasic pointed out that Serbia had come a long way from importing security to becoming an exporter of security, with aspirations to further improve its engagement and cooperation with other countries in the region.

Gasic and Due discussed the current presence and future prospects of further engagement of the Serbian Armed Forces in UN and EU multinational operations.

Due said that Serbia had become a leader in the region when it came to active participation in peacekeeping operations and expressed his gratitude for Serbia contributing over 200 members of its armed forces to peacekeeping operations, including a recent delivery of Serbian peacekeepers to the Central African Republic and its decision to send peacekeepers to Mali soon.

Gasic and Due agreed that a regional meeting of troop and police contributor countries to the United Nations, taking place in Belgrade on October 20-21, was the best proof that the Ministry of Defense and the Serbian Armed Forces enjoyed great credibility in the international community.

Photo Tanjug/S. Radovanovic (archive)