BELGRADE, July 29. /TASS/. Expanded bilateral defense cooperation was at the center of a recent meeting between Serbian Defense Minister Bratislav Gasic and visiting US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for European and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Policy David Baker, the Serbian defense ministry said.
According to the ministry, the Serbian side reiterated its commitment to develop strategic dialogue with the United States in the defense sphere. The Serbian minister stressed the importance of military cooperation with the US, including under the partnership program with the Ohio National Guard.
Gasic thanked the US side for its assistance in the organization of multinational Platinum Wolf 25 drills and noted that the Serbian government made an exception from the moratorium on the participation in international exercises and allowed it to hold several events with the participation of the US military.
The Platinum Wolf 25 multinational tactical exercise was held at South Base near the city of Bujanovac in June. It was organized by the Serbian Armed Forces with the support of the US European Command and involved more than 700 troops from 11 countries, including NATO member states - the United States, Italy, the United Kingdom, Greece, Romania, Hungary, Montenegro, and North Macedonia, as well as off-bloc countries - Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia. The maneuvers included elements of peacekeeping missions, combat operations in the urban environment, and evacuation of the wounded.
Earlier, Serbian Foreign Minister Marco Djuric expressed the country’s interest in expanding cooperation in the defense area. After a meeting with US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau on the sidelines of the 55th session of the General Assembly of the Organization of American States, Djuric stated that both sides "are determined to strengthen bilateral ties at the strategic level, including in the defense sector."