France and Serbia

Political relations

France supports the political and economic reforms undertaken by Serbia since the turn of the century and its efforts towards EU accession. In addition to bilateral relations and the EU framework, France and Serbia also maintain political relations, including in the framework of the Berlin process.

Visits

• November 2014: visit by French Prime Minister Manuel Valls to Serbia
• September 2016: visit by the Prime Minister of Serbia, Mr Vučić
• February 2018: visit to France by the Serbian Foreign Minister, Mr Dačić
• April 2018: visit to Serbia by the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs
• July 2018: visit to France by the President of the Republic of Serbia, Mr Vučić
• February 2019: visit to Serbia by the Minister for European Affairs

For additional information, visit the website of the French Embassy

Economic relations

Our trade has increased in recent years (up 8.6% between 2016 and 2017 on the whole) and there is still considerable growth potential. With a restored trade surplus, France is now Serbia’s 12th-largest supplier and 10th-largest customer. There are nearly 100 French companies in Serbia, employing almost 11,000 people. The main French investors in Serbia are Michelin, Société Générale, Crédit Agricole, Tarkett, Lafarge, Bongrain, Atos and Lactalis.

Cultural, scientific and technical cooperation

Our cooperation supports a plan to revive the study of French in the education system, develops inter-university exchanges, training programmes for cultural professions and promotes research programmes between laboratories. The French School in Belgrade currently has 509 students, at all school levels. The mobility of Serbian students and researchers towards France is a key priority for our embassy in Serbia.

For additional information, visit:

• French Embassy in Belgrade
• Institut Français of Serbia (Belgrade, Niš, Novi Sad)

Other cooperation

Cooperation between France and Serbia is active in a number of fields (support for European integration and administrative reform, defence and the environment) and draws in particular on the presence of French international technical experts. Security cooperation is strong, with enhanced cooperation in policing, judicial investigations and the fight against trafficking. A Regional Unit Against Organized Crime in Southeast Europe was established in Belgrade in 2012.

^{Updated: 9 July 2019}