"Serbia won't be getting much gas from TANAP"

President Aleksandar Vucic was on Tuesday welcomed by his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the ceremonial opening of the TANAP pipeline.

The Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) was inaugurated in Eskisehir, Turkey.

Vucic was in Eskisehir at the special invitation of Erdogan and briefly spoke with the Turkish president upon arrival and stood beside him on a ceremonial stage, alongside the presidents of Ukraine and Azerbaijan, Petro Poroshenko and Ilham Aliyev.

"My presence here today represents a new, very visible confirmation of the successful bilateral relations between Serbia and Turkey, which contribute both to the progress of our two countries and the Western Balkan region," the Vucic said in his address.

The construction of TANAP, he said, is very important for two reasons: first, because it gives hope that the region of Southeast Europe will not remain isolated when it comes to big energy projects.

Second, he said, is important because this project will improve energy connectivity of this part of Europe, and therefore will have an impact on improving the investment climate and will, Vucic believes, bring new investors to the countries of the region.

Before his departure to Turkey, Vucic said it was "important for our country to constantly improve relations with Turkey."

"For us, this is primarily of great bilateral significance, it is an honor for us to be invited (to the ceremony), although I don't think that there will be plenty of gas for Serbia from TANAP - but there will be for Italy, Albania, and other countries," said Vucic.