08.11.2016.
CEDC Meeting of Defence Ministers
State Secretary at the Ministry of Defence Nenad Nerić took part in the Central European Defence Cooperation Plus meeting in Frauenkirchen, at the invitation of the Ministry of Defence and Sports of the Republic of Austria.At the meeting, State Secretary Nerić pointed to the activities that the Republic of Serbia is conducting in solving the problem of migrant crisis, having in mind that the aim of the consultations of Defence Ministers from Central European Defence Initiative was to reach common attitude towards addressing this issue in Europe.
State Secretary emphasized that the meeting pointed out the fact that migrant crisis requires resolved and responsible actions of all relevant bodies at international, regional and local level in order to define short-term and long-term solutions in eliminating the causes and mitigating the effects of massive migrations. Serbia, as a country candidate for the EU membership, would like to act as a responsible member of the international community and give an adequate response to the current crisis by doing its share.
Besides security risk, migrant crisis also represents a great financial burden for all countries on this route. Despite the decrease in the number of migrants in comparison to the last year, the Western Balkans route is very active and Serbia, like other countries on this route, cannot deal alone with the consequences of the crisis. Therefore, it needs a greater help from the available EU funds for solving that problem. Also, the participants were acquainted with the efforts Serbia invests in carrying out stronger border control and prevention of criminal activities of smugglers and traffickers who strive to make a profit on the misery of those people.
Nerić stressed that Austrian initiative to talk on the subject of migrations with the Western Balkan countries, as well, sets new standards when it comes to dealing with this question. Only by involving all countries on the migrant route in the discussion, a solution can be found, which would lead to the efficient management of the crisis and respect of fundamental rights and human dignity of all migrants. Moreover, hope was expressed that the agreements made in the meeting would contribute to reaching a unique response of EU to this delicate question.On the sidelines of the meeting State Secretary had a bilateral meeting with Austrian Minister of Defence and Sports Hans Peter Doskozil. On that occasion, the interlocutors concluded that the defence cooperation of two countries was diverse and meaningful. It follows the total relations of two countries, with the space for further improvement. In the forthcoming period there are considerable possibilities for the exchange of experience and potential joint participation in multinational operations, as well as the transfer of experience in security and defence aspects of accession into EU, collaboration within the framework of the European Defence Agency and EU battlegroups.
During his visit to Austria, State Secretary Nerić laid a wreath at the memorial to Serbs killed in the Great War in Frauenkirchen.
