Vucic: Russian experts with whom we will discuss NIS to arrive on Friday

The president of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, has announced that the Russian experts with whom the talks about Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS), on which the USA imposed sanctions due to the Russian ownership, are to continue will arrive to Serbia tomorrow. On Wednesday, on TV B92, Vucic said that he had told the Russians that they should propose a solution for NIS and that the only thing he wouldn’t allow was for Serbia to be left without oil products and that the refinery in Pancevo had to operate and have spare parts.

Vucic said that he knew the Russians’ position about their ownership in NIS following the introduction of the sanctions on that company, but added that he didn’t want to comment on it publicly. He repeated that Serbia would not nationalize NIS and take away property from the Russians or anybody.

He also announced that, on Thursday afternoon, he would also discuss the sanctions against NIS with representatives of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) within the U.S. Department of the Treasury, from which he expected more information, but added that he believed that some kind of a “gray zone” would remain.

– I will also try to talk to the new American administration – Vucic said and added that there shouldn’t be much hope, as the sanctions against NIS had been cleverly designed.

NIS a.d. Novi Sad

NIS a.d. Petrol Rafinerija nafte Pančevo

Naftna industrija Srbije ad Novi Sad

NIS

Pančevo Oil Refinery

Office of Foreign Assets Control

OFAC

US Department of the Treasury

Aleksandar Vučić

introduction of sanctions on NIS