U.S. Ambassador is clear: Serbia is going in the right direction

Hill said in an interview for the holiday triple edition of Blic that some will have a problem with his assessment, and that he understands that people are frustrated, and that when they live in one place they have a lot of frustration and can conclude that things are going in the wrong direction.

"But when you have the perspective that I had, of being away and coming back, you see that this is a state that has ambition," Hill said.

He stated that he sees a country where more and more people can fulfill their personal and national ambitions by being there, and he finds that encouraging.

Hill said that some people are very pessimistic by nature, as if they don't want to be disappointed, and then always remain pessimistic, and added that both in private and public life, a person must ask himself where he is and where he is going.

"I feel encouraged, I'm sure I'll get hate mail because of this, but I think Serbia is going in the right direction. You have to compare yourself to other countries to understand why I believe you're going in the right direction," Hill said.

He assessed that the positive trend is also reflected in the fact that after several years in Serbia, two mutually independent public opinion surveys show that support for joining the EU is growing in the country.

He believes that Serbia should be in a larger structure that respects sovereignty and different points of view, and that it can extract this from the EU. He also referred to statistics that show that the Serbian economy will be better off in the EU. Hill pointed out that the numerous foreign factories in Vojvodina are a sign that these people feel that Serbia will be a member of the EU.

"That is the real future for Serbia, and I think the Serbs have recognized that better relations with the EU are important. And they see it now. They see a lot of energy, some real strength in reaching out to the EU, in trying to explain Serbia's point of view, and they understand the EU's point of view without causing conflict," Hill said.

He said that sometimes things will go in the wrong direction but in general he thinks the country is moving forward.

The US ambassador believes that Serbian-American relations are moving forward, he would like it to go faster, but he pointed out that in diplomacy the shortest distance between two places is not a straight line, it has curves.

"I think that we, Serbia and the USA, are really trying to speed up the dialogue process, we are trying to understand each other, to listen a lot more. We have a misunderstanding about Kosovo, I'm not here to tell you that we don't. Obviously we have a disagreement, but we must not allow the disagreement in one area slows down our ability to work in other areas," Hill said.

He assessed that there has been great progress in US-Serbia relations, regarding the "capacity to talk", regarding the issue of Kosovo, but also regarding other issues.

"When we talk about Serbia, it's not just about relations with the USA, it's about our understanding of its views on the Middle East, the situation in Ukraine and what could be the way forward. It's important that we listen and understand. We need to understand where the other country is coming from, to look for areas in which we agree and try to expand that agreement. And we are trying to do that here, in Serbia," Hill said.

Asked about Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić's announcement that US sanctions against the Oil Industry of Serbia (NIS) were essentially confirmed, Hill said that he did not want to speculate about sanctions, but pointed out that the US was concerned about the fact that the most important refinery in Serbia was sold to the Russians. and that the matter be considered carefully. He emphasized that the most important thing is that it is not directed against Serbia, "and certainly not against the Serbian economy."

"This is an attempt to really deny Russia the ability to wage a war in Ukraine by using Serbian money. We'll see how that plays out. I can assure you that we are looking at it very carefully so as not to cause problems for the Serbian economy," Hill said.

The American ambassador said that Serbia has long maintained an independent, some would say uneven foreign policy, which sends a confusing message. He said he was pleased to see to what degree Serbia has developed its relationship with Ukraine, which, according to him, is the central issue facing European security. He said that in the future it will be evaluated how the states have positioned themselves in relation to this.

Hill assessed that Serbia had an important role in helping Ukraine and that she tried to help it in several ways, including the most important, humanitarian one.

When asked about holding EXPO 2027, Hill said that Serbia is announcing a different future, which will therefore expand its scope. The US wants to have a pavilion there and to be associated with Serbia's ambition and its great capacity to do more, said Hill.

"We will have to collect money from our companies, but we will do it and we will participate in EXPO 2027 because it coincides with the optimism we have for Serbia," he said.

Hill could not answer where they will live in 2025, whether in Belgrade, Denver or Florida, but he added that one thing is certain that no matter where they are, he and his wife Julie will keep Serbia in their hearts.