Vucic: Belgrade glad Budapest has been picked to host Putin-Trump summit

IRIG - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Friday Belgrade was glad Budapest had been picked to host a summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump.

"As regards that summit, a long and serious analysis is required. Ukraine is the predominant topic. The good news is that peace is being discussed, and when peace is discussed, there is a chance to attain it. I am glad Hungary has been picked to host that meeting, but I am not sure other European centres will be as glad as Belgrade is. The choice of Budapest is no coincidence," Vucic told reporters during a tour of the construction site of the Iriski venac tunnel near Novi Sad.

He also said he expected the "liberal, left-wing America" and some European countries to exert pressure in the coming days to thwart the summit.

Vucic added that he expected the summit to also address other topics besides Ukraine - above all, a new energy map of the world and how it would be divided by world powers.

He noted that he was not certain Europe would retain the main role.

Vucic also said he would meet with Hungarian PM Viktor Orban on Monday or Wednesday and that it remained to be agreed whether the meeting would be held in Budapest or Belgrade.

"Serbia has certain requests to make now, especially after the introduction of (US) sanctions on (Russian-majority owned oil company) NIS," he said.