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Serbian leader tells premier-designate to boost ties with EU, Russia, US

The Serbian leader officially designated Ana Brnabic to head the Balkan state’s new government

BELGRADE, June 16. /TASS /. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said he had tasked his prime minister-designate Ana Brnabic with boosting ties with the European Union, Russia, China and the United States.

On Tuesday, the Serbian leader officially designated Brnabic, the country’s former minister of state administration and local self-government, to head the Balkan state’s new government.

"During the upcoming period, we will need to strengthen Serbia’s position on the international arena, both in the West and East; both regarding the European integration, which is Serbia’s strategic goal, and in relations with Russia, China, the United States, Arab countries and other nations worldwide," the president said in a televised address to the nation on Thursday evening.

Her cabinet still requires a formal approval from the parliament, which is expected to take place during the legislature’s next session.

The deadline for forming the government is June 22, because all ministers will need to be present at Vucic’s formal inauguration ceremony due next day.

Brnabic was born in 1975 in Belgrade. She holds an MBA in marketing from the University of Hull in England and is known for her staunch pro-Western views. For more than a decade, Brnabic worked with international organizations, foreign investors, and consulting companies.

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