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    Interested in 'Make in India' initiative: Serbia Deputy PM Ivica Dacic

    Synopsis

    "Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and PM Modi have set the common goal — the goal of our trade reaching $1 billion over the next five years," says Ivica Dacic.

    ET Bureau
    Serbia, one of states formed after the breakup of Yugoslavia, carries forward legacy of strong ties between India and erstwhile Yugoslavia. It is emerging as a destination for Indian investments in Eastern Europe and could emerge as Delhi’s gateway to the region. The country’s Deputy PM cum Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic told ET’s Dipanjan Roy Chaudhury that Serbia holds promise as a destination for Indian tourists, filmmakers and that his government is interested in Make in India initiative.

    Are you satisfied with the economic cooperation between the two countries? What are the future prospects?

    With a growth rate of more than 7%, India is the fastest-growing country among the leading global economies. Serbia is impressed with India’s record of accomplishment in economic development and use of modern technologies. This shows the success of policies implemented by the Government of Narendra Modi. Serbia is interested in the “Make in India” initiative, in joint ventures, especially in a number of areas where we have mastered advanced technologies.

    I believe that there is a lot of room for broadening and enhancing the volume of economic cooperation, which we want to upgrade to a higher level. Investment cooperation, production cooperation and scientific and technological cooperation in the IT sector are highly promising, as well as the cooperation in areas of tractor industry, agroindustry, automobile industry, defence industry, pharmaceuticals and filmmaking industry. However, trade in goods between the two countries is still underdeveloped. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have set the common goal – the goal of our trade reaching $ one billion, over the next five years. We can see room for improving our agricultural exports, especially exports of grain, fruit, vegetables and meat, while India is interested in Serbian metals, such as copper and gold.

    During his visit to Serbia in June 2017, top Indian industrialist Anil Ambani discussed with the Serbian Minister of Defence opportunities for establishing cooperation in the military-technical industry and technology transfer, and possible joint operations of his company and Serbian firms in third markets. We might expect our cooperation to grow in this field, too. In October 2016, Serbia and India initialled the Air Transport Agreement. The conclusion of this Agreement will create conditions for direct air transport services to be operated between Serbia and India, enabling the so-called code-sharing arrangements in order to contribute to better connectivity between the two countries.

    How much is India present in Serbia economically?

    India’s tractor manufacturers are among the finest in the world; “Mahindra” and “Sonalika” assemble tractors in Serbia, in cooperation with Serbian companies, while TAFE places its tractors on the Serbian market. Having in mind that Serbia is technologically well equipped, and that it has a past record of successful mass production of tractors and machinery (IMT and IMR companies), I invite Indian companies to invest in the existing or new capacities.

    India is a world leader in the sector of applied digital technologies, while Serbia has achieved marked results in the development of IT services and digitalization, which are among our Government’s priorities. An IT park of the “Embassy Group” from Bangalore located in the vicinity of Belgrade, exemplifies the cooperation in this area.

    Serbia is becoming increasingly famous in the world, including in India, as a good location for film shoot – apart from the natural beauties of Serbia, foreign filmmakers are also drawn by the highly skilled and professional staff and by tax breaks. Three Indian blockbuster movies have been filmed in Serbia so far, one of them starring the celebrated actor Ajith Kumar.

    Why do you think Serbian businessmen should visit India and invest there?
    I invite Indian companies to invest in Serbia, a stable country of expanding economy, low inflation and an almost non-existent budgetary deficit. When it comes to the business environment, Serbia has made considerable progress and has been declared as 2016 world leader according to the number of jobs created, based on foreign investments compared to its population. Serbia is the communications hub in Southeast Europe, and has very favourable Free Trade Area Agreements with the European Union (and we have considerably advanced in the process of our EU integration towards full membership), with Russia, Turkey, etc. The introduction of a visa-free travel regime of up to 30 days has made it easier for Indian citizens to visit the beautiful landscapes of Serbia and experience our hospitality, as well as to get in touch with Serbian partners and do business in Serbia.

    What is your assessment of the current bilateral relations between India and Serbia?
    This year, India is celebrating the 70th anniversary of its independence, won by non-violent activism and peacefully, which continues to inspire international community. Next year India and Serbia will mark the 70th anniversary of their diplomatic relations. As co-founders of the Non-Aligned Movement, we have traditional friendly relations, and we are well aware of the fact that even in the most difficult of times in the 1990s India did not turn its back on us. Our bilateral relations are close and devoid of outstanding issues, marked by mutual understanding and support on issues of vital importance, as reaffirmed by the increasingly frequent high-level visits.

    We highly appreciate the support that India lends to the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Republic of Serbia and our efforts aimed at resolving the issue of Kosovo and Metohija through dialogue. On the other hand, Serbia consistently supports India in multilateral forums, and in its fight against terrorism.

    As a reflection of such close relations and the importance it attaches to India, Serbia has recently made a very important decision to unilaterally waive a visa requirement for Indian for a short stay not exceeding 30 days, which will significantly contribute to more people-to-people exchanges, improve economic ties, encourage investment growth and significantly expand the volume of tourism.

    How familiar are Serbian people with India, with its culture and tradition?
    Serbian people are impressed by the ancient and very rich Indian culture, and have lately had more and more opportunities to enjoy the Indian culture in abundance. A sari exhibition was recently held at the Ethnographic Museum, as well as a concert of Indian classical music performed by the famous Anuradha Pal, and a dance spectacle starring the incredible Geeta Chandran. Indian films and TV series are regularly shown by Serbian TV channels, and are very popular. In Serbia, people hold the Indian greats such as Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru in high esteem, while two large boulevards in Belgrade bear their names.

    The recent establishment of Hindi Language Departments at Serbian universities will help the academic and cultural bonds to grow stronger. So far, India has also received 150 scholarship holders from Serbia, trained in various fields. Apart from the import of medicines and medical supplies from India, its traditional medicine -- Ayurveda and homeopathic medicine, are hugely popular. Yoga is massively
    practised all across Serbia. The International Yoga Day was celebrated this year, too, both in Belgrade and in a number of other cities in Serbia.
    The Economic Times

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