Serbian Minister: "Turkey is a valuable partner and major power"

A leading Serbian politician and government minister has said that Turkey is a valuable and influential partner for his country, adding that Belgrade is interested in promoting ties in all fields with the state he described as "one of the major powers in the region." In an exclusive interview with Today's Zaman on the eve of his visit to Turkey, Dusan Petrovic, Serbian minister of agriculture, trade, forestry and water management and deputy president of the governing Democratic Party, said bilateral ties with Turkey are on solid ground with intensive political dialogue going on at the highest level. "An enhanced dialogue and extensive political cooperation are the best ways to improve our existing relations," he underlined, praising common values and traditional bonds the countries share. "Unfortunately, in some fields of mutual cooperation they are far from their full, desirable potential," he lamented, indicating that improvement is needed in economic, scientific and other forms of cooperation, especially in the private sector. Petrovic said he believes the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signed between the two countries in the past may serve as "a sound foundation for further development" in trade and exchange of knowledge in the field of agribusiness. "The strengthening of ties between our countries could help the promotion of future investments, mutual recognition on the markets of third countries, joint projects and programs in the field of agriculture and scientific and cultural exchange, all of this being highly important for the future development of our countries," he explained.