Foreign relations of Serbia

Foreign relations of Serbia are accomplished by efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Serbia has inherited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, along with all of its holdings, after the dissolution of the previous state union with Montenegro. Serbian foreign ministries continue to serve citizens of Montenegro in countries that do not have Montenegrin diplomatic presence. The governments of Serbia and Montenegro expressed an interest in pursuing a common foreign policy. Former President of Serbia Boris Tadić referred to relations with the European Union (EU), Russia, United States and China as the four pillars of foreign policy. Serbia joined the United Nations on 1 November 2000.

Bilateral relations

Serbia has established diplomatic relations with 191 UN member states, the Holy See and Palestine, the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, and the European Union.

Serbia has not established diplomatic relations with:
Marshall Islands, Micronesia. 
All of the states with limited recognition

Africa
Ever since the times of Josip Broz Tito and the Non-Aligned Movement, Serbia has enjoyed excellent relations with African nations. Angola, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Zimbabwe and South Africa are Serbia's closest allies in Sub-Saharan Africa. South Africa and Serbia have had excellent relations since the signing of diplomatic relations in 1992 following the end of the Apartheid system. Many ANC and Umkhonto we Sizwe resistance fighters received training in Serbia during Apartheid. South Africa is also home to around 20,000 Serbs, mainly living in the Johannesburg area. South Africa is also voicing support for Serbia over the Kosovo issue. Nelson Mandela was also made an honorary citizen of Belgrade. Serbia is also actively involved in many investments in Angola with whom it has excellent political and economic relations.

America
Serbia has strong but strained relations with the United States and a bit more relaxed relations with Canada, because of their hostile recognition of Kosovo's independence and NATO aggression from 1999, which aimed to help this secession. On 25 February 2008, Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica demanded that the United States rescind its recognition of Kosovo, warning that "there will be no stability until the fake state" is annulled.

Serbia has very good relations with Latin America, except Colombia and Panama, which did recognize Kosovo's independence. Brazil, the largest country in the region, decided not to recognize Kosovo's independence until an agreement with Serbia is reached.

Asia
Serbia has excellent relations with countries such as China, Japan, Indonesia, India, Kazakhstan and South Korea. These countries are important economic partners for Serbia in Asia.

Europe

Serbia has signed the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the European Union on 29 April 2008 and is in the process of the Republic of being admitted into the framework of the European Union as a full-fledged member state.
Serbia officially applied for European Union membership on 22 December 2009, and the European Commission recommended making it an official candidate on 12 October 2011.  After the vote of the 27 EU foreign ministers on 28 February 2012, where with 26 votes for and 1 vote against, a candidate status recommendation was issued, and Serbia received full candidate status on 1 March.  On 28 June 2013 the European Council endorsed the Council of Ministers conclusions and recommendations to open accession negotiations with Serbia. In December 2013 the Council of the European Union approved opening negotiations on Serbia's accession in January 2014, and the first Intergovernmental Conference was held on 21 January at the European Council in Brussels.

Former Yugoslav Republics and Provinces

Other European countries

Oceania

See also

 Government of Serbia
 Ministry of Foreign Affairs
List of diplomatic missions in Serbia
List of diplomatic missions of Serbia
Visa requirements for Serbian citizens
Serbia in intergovernmental organizations

References

External links

 Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia

 
Category:Politics of Serbia