Serbia and Bahrain signed a Memorandum on Political Cooperation between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs today, as the first agreement between the two countries, which will be the initial trigger for the development of further relations and closer cooperation.
The Memorandum was signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain Abdulatif bin Rashid Alzijani and the Minister of Agriculture of Serbia Branislav Nedimovic.
“This is the first visit of the President of Serbia to Bahrain and the first agreement that the two countries have signed since the establishment of diplomatic relations. He is the initial capsule for the development of further relations. We had serious and meaningful talks today, definitely agriculture and the food sector are coming into focus,” said Nedimovic after signing the Memorandum.
He conveyed the words of the King of Bahrain that during the “corona period”, when they were locked, and everything was closed, they realized how much they lacked food and how much they needed it.
That is why they want to expand their businesses to large areas, including Serbia.
“They looked at our numbers, how much we work, that our exports are over 4.2 billion dollars and that there is great potential for investments in agriculture,” said Nedimovic.
Therefore, he expects serious investments in the processing industry sector, first of all food, as well as joint investments of Serbian and Bahraini companies in the sector of agriculture and food safety in Serbia.
Nedimovic reminded that Bahrain is one of the richest countries in the Gulf and that is why it means a lot when there is cooperation with it, as well as with the UAE, especially since logistically, cooperation with them is not a problem for Serbia, because it arrives quickly.
He pointed out that there are great demands for fruits and vegetables, especially Serbian raspberries, strawberries and apples, as well as for cereal products.
“They realized that our goods are of high quality, and more competitive than some other goods. The opening of the UAE and Bahrain is the opening of the entire Gulf. We return here where we were 30-40 years ago, when Yugoslavia was. These are new markets, new opportunities to export as much as possible, and thus the prices of products will grow as soon as the demand grows,” said Nedimovic.
The signed Memorandum envisages regular political consultations between the two Ministries of Foreign Affairs.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bahrain conveyed that today’s meeting between the King of Bahrain and the President of Serbia was very successful, and that the King wished a warm welcome to the President of Serbia, who is on his first visit to the Kingdom.
The talks, he says, covered all areas of cooperation – political cooperation, the fight against terrorism, at the bilateral and international level, the fight against the corona virus pandemic, the importance of cooperation in that fight and overcoming the crisis.
He added that they also talked about ways to strengthen mutual cooperation, especially in the economy, trade, investments, and scientific fields.
“We are looking for ways for direct contact between the private sector, the importance of agriculture, tourism, as areas in which we can cooperate, as well as in the field of food safety, was emphasized,” said Alzijani, RTV reports.
