Remarks With Serbian President Boris Tadic After Their Meeting

SECRETARY RICE: Good morning. I am very pleased to welcome to Washington and to the State Department the President of Serbia. President Tadic, thank you very much for being here. We've just had a very good discussion about the President's vision and I think it is a vision that is very much shared for Serbia's future, one of prosperity and democracy and a force for stability in the Balkans and Europe as a whole. Europe, of course, has gone through a tremendous transformation in the last twenty years and we look forward to that continuing transformation that allows Serbia and the Balkans to find complete peace and stability.

We are going to sign now a Status of Forces Agreement. It is only fitting because Serbia and the United States have enjoyed good cooperation. And I look forward to the deepening of our defense relationship and indeed the deepening of our friendship.

Mr. President.

PRESIDENT TADIC: Thank you very much, Madame Secretary. I am very satisfied with our talks and I would like to say that today we are signing this document, this agreement, which is going to be very important in terms of cooperation between two defense sectors.

After signing this document, Serbia's armed forces are going to create cooperation with the National Guard from Ohio and this is from my point of view in terms of practice very important, in terms of the location and also in terms of relations between the United States and Serbia. Without cooperation in the defense sector, we are not going to have cooperation in the economy on the high level. And from that reason, I'm expecting that in the future, we will have more investments from the United States, United States companies in Serbia. Thank you.
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