The Ambassador of Russia to Serbia, Aleksandar Bocan-Harčenko, said today that his country will do everything to ensure Serbia’s energy security, and also expressed confidence that the situation surrounding Naftna industrija Srbije will soon be resolved.
“Russia will do everything in its power to regularly supply gas and other strategic raw materials to Serbia as long as the Serbian market remains open to Russian energy products,” Harčenko said in an interview with Tanjug when asked about Russian energy deliveries to Serbia.
Speaking about Naftna industrija Srbije (NIS), the ambassador pointed out that the crisis was not created by Moscow, but arose as a consequence of American sanctions whose political goal, as he said, is to drive Russia out of Serbia and the entire region.
He expressed confidence that the problem around NIS “will not disrupt relations between Russia and Serbia or the reputation of the Russian Federation in Serbia.”
According to him, the sanctions also represent a very heavy blow to Serbia’s economy, and those who imposed them, he added, did not think much about the consequences for the country itself.
Bocan-Harčenko also said that Russia’s Gazprom and Gazprom Neft have invested heavily in the development and modernization of Naftna industrija Srbije, both in terms of investments and knowledge and effort, making NIS the most valuable and most modern company in the entire region.
The ambassador described the successful development of Naftna industrija Srbije as a “joint achievement and pride” of Russia and Serbia.
Asked why Gazprom did not sell a majority stake in Naftna industrija Srbije to Serbia, Bocan-Harčenko said that this is a question for Gazprom’s negotiators, noting that he is not familiar with the situation since he did not participate in all the talks and cannot provide a detailed and reliable answer.
Regarding claims that Serbia will have to diversify its supply sources due to the ban on importing Russian gas into the European Union, he said that this is a matter to be resolved by representatives of Belgrade and Brussels.
“It is a matter of relations between Serbia and the European Union,” the ambassador said.
Bocan-Harčenko also addressed the issue of trade exchange between Russia and Serbia and noted that it has declined due to sanctions and very difficult global circumstances, but that at the same time there has been no complete halt in trade between the two sides, which he sees as a positive signal.
“Some projects have changed given the circumstances, but there is also movement,” Bocan-Harčenko said.
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Source: Biznis.telegraf.rs, Foto: Antonio Ahel / ATAImages