H.E. Mr. Aleksander Botsan-Kharchenko, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Serbia, delivered a lecture on the Balkan Politics of the Russian Federation. Mr. Botsan-Kharchenko depicted Russian strategic approach towards the Western Balkans and tackled current issues of Russian energy policy and relations with the European Union and NATO. Russian ambassador emphasised the Western Balkans as a region which plays important role in European stability. Unsolved political status of Kosovo and Metohija causes long-term instability for the region. Russian Federation supports continuation of Belgrade–Priština negotiations, but on equal terms and mutual trust. The lecture gathered a number of representatives of the diplomatic corps in Belgrade, scholars, academicians, the IIPE alumni, students of several Belgrade universities, as well as the media.
