Vucic: I think we will get new gas deal with Russia by end-September

BEIJING, - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Tuesday in Beijing he expected Serbia to agree a new natural gas deal with Russia by end-September.

Vucic said this after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, when asked by reporters whether he had received assurances from the Russian side about the price of natural gas.

He added that Serbia would soon sign another agreement with Russia and that he had received assurances the terms of the new gas deal would be favourable.

He said a Serbia-Russia committee on cooperation, which usually meets once a year or once in six months, would hold a session by the end of the year.

Vucic said he was glad Putin had "said even more strongly how important it is for Serbia to preserve its independence."

"And he pointed out to me that some would prefer not to see me at the helm of Serbia and as Serbia's president," he added.

Vucic also said they had discussed Kosovo-Metohija and the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially in Republika Srpska.

"Russia is firmly on the positions of respect for the territorial integrity of Serbia, which it has held all the time, but it is not just that. It clearly speaks about erosion and violation of the Brussels Agreement and all other agreements we have signed with the other party in the presence of and with all guarantees from the third party," he noted.