Diplomacy and Commerce No.34

www.diplomacyandcommerce.rs

December 2018 | ISSUE No. 34 | Price 350 RSD

9772466380002

WE CAN GO MUCH FASTER!

RADOJKA NIKOLIĆ

Biznis i Finansije magazine

CREATING AN INCENTIVIZED BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT

03 100th DEC

ANNIVERSARY OF THE UNION

FIC INSPIRES POSITIVE CHANGES

ALEN ŠERANIĆ

Minister of Science and Technology of Republika Srpska

ONE LOVE, AGELESS AND EVERGREEN

LEPOSAVA SIBINOVIĆ MILOŠEVIĆ Painter and sculptor

YANA MIKHAILOVA

President of the Foreign Investors Council

YOUNG AND GROWING H.E. Mr. SUBRATA BHATTACHARJEE

INNOVATION TALK

Ambassador of India

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT

MINISTERS OF THE REGION UNITED AROUND COMMON DIGITAL FUTURE November 29th, 2018

Slovenia Dr MIRO CERAR

Minister of Foreign Affairs

EDITORIAL

Drunken November Night, 100 Years Later Dear readers, A few days ago, we marked a centenary of the realization of “the century-old dream for South Slavs to live in one state”. We don’t need to elaborate what happened with that state in 1941, 1991 and 1992 because it’s common knowledge. What we are interested in knowing is how today, a century since the establishment of the joint state and almost three decades since its last disintegration, this common space looks like in terms of media and marketing industry.

I am on the sun drenched terrace of the Bernardin Hotel in Portorož, enjoying the coffee break at the Sample conference that assembled marketing and media people from all over the region – Belgrade, Zagreb, Split, Slovenia, Montenegro; basically the entire region with several foreign additions. This is almost an identical gathering to that in other towns of the former Yugoslavia like the ‘Weekend Media Festival’ in Rovinj and 'Digital' in Belgrade. Everybody still speaks „our“ language although younger Slovenians and Macedonians are struggling so they need additional explanations for certain words.

Still, I think we understand each other fine.

Most of the foreigners I mentioned earlier have come to explain to us, yet again, that “content is the king” and that it is better to be young, beautiful and rich than old, ugly and poor. They are telling this to us, the people whose country leader was met with the highest honours in all capital cities of the world some 50 years ago and whose companies built bridges and skyscrapers all across our planet. They are telling this to us, who are today the only counter-evidence that humankind is living in the best of all possible worlds and that “Besser war es nie” (“It Has Never Been Better”), to quote the cover of Germany’s Stern magazine from a few weeks ago.

King Aleksandar’s Yugoslavia fell apart in the Second World War only to be restored by Tito and then subsequently disintegrated in the wars from the 1990s. Today, this part of the world is divided into 6 or 7 countries with some

already in the EU and some on their way to there. We speak the same or similar language, we listen to the same or similar music, we love the same recognizable brands, and we all enjoy in the local food and drinks. Please, don’t think that this is applicable only to “the elitist, cosmopolitan circles”. It also applies to taxi drivers, waiters and outdoor market vendors. In the last ten years, there hasn’t been a single awkward situation or an expression of nationalistic intolerance here.

Then, I open newspapers, turn on the TV or open a website application and it dawns on me that I am stupid and misinformed. Apparently, war is again knocking on our door. Serbia has prevented Kosovo from joining Interpol, and Kosovo raised import tariffs on Serbian goods first by 10% and later by 100%. In the meantime, the higher tariffs became applicable to Bosnia too because the Kosovo government feared that Serbian products, like Plazma or Moja Kravica milk, could be exported via the Republic of Srpska to Kosovo. After this, the mayors of the Serb-populated municipalities in Kosovo got angry, resigned and came to Belgrade. They also took pictures in front of the Presidency building in Andrićev Venac.

Then I read how a journalist from Sarajevo vowed never again to go on an organized media tour in Serbia because when she told a waiter in Belgrade that she did not eat pork, he responded with:”What do you want to order then? A lion?”

I go back to my hotel room, turn on the TV and switch to the Croatian channel HTV. There is a round table discussion where a lady (the Croatian ombudswoman) claims that it is not a “communal problem” if somebody is drawing swastikas and the letter U (for Ustasha) on rubbish containers and walls in Zagreb. Before that, the Croatian minister of justice said that this WAS a communal rather than a political problem. After that, I see that one of my friends has shared news about the shamefully lenient sentencing by the Appellate Court in Belgrade in the case of the horrendous murder of Karmen Kamenčić (age 18) in Bosanska Krupa in

July 1992. Below this news, there was a torrent of hateful comments from all sides.

When I woke up the next morning, I flew back to Belgrade. In the car, on my way back from the airport, I read the headlines of the daily newspapers – “Admitting to genocide in Srebrenica – Condition for Serbia joining the EU”, subtitle: “A Slovenian pushes the resolution through”. Another headline – “Book about Luburić published in Croatia – Singing Praises to the Chief of Jasenovac”, “Sloba’s brain stolen in the Hague”, “Milo’s proponents add more Serbs to the list of those banned from entering Montenegro”…

The question I frequently ask myself and other guests when I appear on TV, at press conferences and at private functions is – “Why are political elites encouraging the media they control to constantly keep the region in pre-war tension?” Because they know that this is music to the ears of those people who earn less than 200 euro a month, as Rambo Amadeus once said? Why is it that these people know nothing else but to rule over increasingly poorer and antagonistic tribes?

How is it possible that Rwanda, which 24 years ago suffered from a spine-chilling genocide, is now considered the Switzerland of Africa with the highest economic growth in the continent and the highest number of female deputies in the parliament? Are Hutu and Tutsi tribes smarter than Serbs, Croatians, Bosniaks, Albanians and others? Are we now even more drunk then on that fated November night, that Krleža wrote about, and stupider and more primitive then 23 years ago when the Dayton Agreement was made?

The answer to this question has to come from those very same social elites who, in recesses between two panels or case studies, are sipping on their coffee in the November sun, on the brightly lit terrace of the Bernardin Hotel.

ROBERT ČOBAN

Director

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CONTENTS

06

18

YANA MIKHAILOVA

OGNJEN KISIN

FIC INSPIRES POSITIVE CHANGES

QUALITY THAT OPENS ANY DOOR

President of the Foreign Investors Council

Executive Director of Konstruktor Group

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WE CAN GO MUCH FASTER!

CREATING AN INCENTIVIZED BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT

RADOJKA NIKOLIĆ

ALEN ŠERANIĆ

Biznis i Finansije magazine

Minister of Science and Technology of Republika Srpska

53

13

NEITHER A SAINT, NOR A HYPOCRITE

YOUNG AND GROWING H.E. Mr. SUBRATA BHATTACHARJEE

BOJANA VUNTURIŠEVIĆ

16

56

ANDREJ BELE

LEPOSAVA SIBINOVIĆ MILOŠEVIĆ

Pop-rock singer/songwriter

Ambassador of India

ONE LOVE, AGELESS AND EVERGREEN

WE ARE CONSTANTLY IMPROVING WORK AND PRODUCT QUALITY Head of Strategic Business Unit 'Coffee' at Atlantic Grupa

Painter and sculptor

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INTERVIEW

FIC Inspires Positive Changes Mutual collaboration is needed for bringing Serbian market closer to EU rules and practices.

Therefore, FIC regularly shares its analysis of proposals for policy reforms with EU institutions, Serbian Government as well as all other important stakeholders. In our focus today are, among other things, structural reforms and strengthening of the tax administration YANA MIKHAILOVA President of the Foreign Investors Council

Serbia needs to speed up the reforms and accelerate accession negotiations if it wants to catch up with EU level of economic development says Yana Mikhailova, President of the Foreign Investors Council. Each year, for the last five years, FIC regularly engages in a dialogue with the EU institutions, with the aim to assist the process by offering its analyses and recommendations on improvement of economic policies.

What do you see as the most important value of the exchange of views between FIC and EU representatives for the Serbian EU accession process?

— The traditional dialogue with EU institutions that FIC has for five years now is a very important step for gaining and sharing most updated information regarding business climate in Serbia. FIC believes that it is of crucial importance that Serbia uses this momentum to accelerate reforms. By engaging in direct communication with representatives of various EU institutions as well as Serbian Government, and sharing deep understanding of both EU and Serbian markets, we provide active support to the process of EU integration and thus can help the acceleration of reforms. European institutions were as always encouraged to actively support Serbia, because

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mutual collaboration is needed for bringing Serbian market closer to EU rules and practices.

How this dialogue evolved over the last five years and what were the most tangible effects so far?

— As every dialogue on regular basis, this dialogue of course evolved over time. In particular, exchange of information about key challenges in the Serbian business climate proved to be beneficial for the process of EU negotiations, especially when it comes to law implementation in Serbia. During the years, and as a follow up of each visit, FIC regularly and meticulously continued to share with all parties, meaning EU institutions, Serbian Government as well as all other important stakeholders, its analysis of current and future reg-

ulations providing proposals for their improvement. The most tangible results achieved so far, reflect in subsequent positive changes of many different laws important for doing business on this market.

Implementation of FIC proposals would bring benefits to the citizens, the state and all investors and will definitely raise the overall business climate to a higher level.

This is the ultimate goal of the Foreign Investors Council.

What was your major message for the EU interlocutors this year?

— During visit this year, FIC conveyed that Serbia continues steady but moderate progress in reforms, which has secured stability, but is not enough to reach the set goal. In order to catch up with EU level of economic development – stronger

EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION ABOUT KEY CHALLENGES IN THE SERBIAN BUSINESS CLIMATE PROVED TO BE BENEFICIAL FOR THE PROCESS OF EU NEGOTIATIONS, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO LAW IMPLEMENTATION IN SERBIA

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economy and higher standard of living – Serbia needs to speed up the reforms and accelerate accession negotiations.

How do you see your role in accelerating the Serbian EU accession process and the pace of reforms?

— FIC is ready to be a private sector focal point in the EU negotiation process. We have a unique capability to provide active support to the process of EU integration, as over 70% of FIC members come from EU and other members have footprint on EU market. Thus, FIC has deep understanding of both EU and Serbian markets and can help the smooth transition of Serbian market into EU. What should be at the top of the Government’s list when it comes to the alignment of the business climate in Serbia with the EU standards?

— Special attention needs to be devoted to achieving sustainable fiscal consolidation (structural reforms, especially privatization and corporatization of state-owned enterprises) and improving law implementation, especially in tax area (strengthening tax administration). In the discussions with EU institutions, we underlined instrumental importance of reforms in the following fields: tax, labour, trade and inspections, food safety, real-estate, digitalization& e-commerce, telecommunications, and general legal framework (specifically bankruptcy and foreign exchange regulations).

TRADE

The US-China Trade War is on Hold Donald Trump and Xi Jinping agree a fragile truce at the G20 summit

Perhaps it was the dessert of caramel-rolled pancakes, crispy chocolate and fresh cream. Or perhaps President Donald Trump had already decided that, during a working dinner on December 1st, he wanted a deal with President Xi Jinping of China. Whatever it was, after sounds of applause drifted out to assembled journalists, the two announced a “highly successful” negotiation. "This was an amazing and productive meeting with unlimited possibilities for both the United States and China,” said Mr Trump.

A more realistic assessment would be that the meeting produced a truce based on two elements: some murky mercantilism, and a deal to talk about a deal.

China will increase its purchase of American farm produce, energy and some industrial goods. In exchange America will delay an escalation in tariffs, from 10% to 25% on $200bn of goods planned for January 1st. That is on hold until March 1st at the earliest. But because the formal talks between the two countries could well fail, this truce is worryingly fragile.

The Chinese commitment to raise purchases of American goods is by an amount “not yet agreed upon, but very substantial”. That is supposed to reduce America’s bilateral trade deficit with China.

Requiring the Chinese government to manage import flows is odd given how America’s government complains that China still behaves like a non-market economy.

The idea is also economic nonsense. Bilateral trade deficits do not mean much, especially in an age when supply chains are global.

In addition, the bilateral trade deficit is not only a function of Chinese imports, but also of Chinese exports to America. Even if the Chinese state can find ways to boost the purchase of American goods, it cannot determine the behaviour of American consumers. They

may be eager to buy from China, if only to get hold of products before relations deteriorate again. In the year to date America’s trade deficit in goods has increased by 10%.

The foundations of the deal’s second part are almost as shaky.

In theory negotiators now have 90 days to agree “structural changes with respect to forced technology transfer, intellectual property

some gaps and can be slow. In the past the Chinese authorities have promised to do things bilaterally, but then dragged their feet. And it can be devilishly hard to prove that the Chinese state is culpable.

When the American authorities accuse it of overseeing forced technology transfer, for example, they are complaining about a practice that is not written into

A MORE REALISTIC ASSESSMENT WOULD BE THAT THE MEETING PRODUCED A TRUCE BASED ON TWO ELEMENTS: SOME MURKY MERCANTILISM, AND A DEAL TO TALK ABOUT A DEAL protection, non-tariff barriers, cyber intrusions and cyber theft, services and agriculture.” That list is ambitious, particularly when levels of trust between the two sides are so low.

One of the fundamental problems in relations between America and China is the difficulty of enforcing a deal. The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has a dispute-settlement process, but it has

any Chinese law. The demands are spoken and statistical evidence of an underlying policy is scant.

Given the number of times the Chinese have broken their pledges not to make transfer of technology a condition of access into their market, America is unlikely to settle for a simple promise backed by the threat of extended tariffs. That means China will have to find mechanisms to demonstrate that, this time, it really

has changed its ways.

A more stable solution to the US-China tensions would involve co-operation with other countries.

The European Union and Japan agree with many American complaints, and there has been some work to come up with new rules to resolve them. In the longer term the WTO could even help to enforce those, though not if the Trump administration persists in undermining its dispute-settlement system.

However, although there was talk during the wider G20 meetings of reforming the organisation, the multilateral trading system did not seem to be much on Mr Trump’s mind. And why should it be? Mr Xi’s offers will have shown that he can squeeze a lot out of China on his own. Why should he act multilaterally when bilateral bullying works so well? After the weekend’s G20 truce, businesses were quick to breathe sighs of relief. But this war is not over yet.

From The Economist, published under licence. The original article, in English, can be found on www.economist.com

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NATIONAL DAYS

in December & January

ARRIVALS & DEPARTURES

DECEMBER

H.E. HYOUNG-CHAN CHOE New Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Serbia

H.E. Hyoung-chan CHOE (51) holds a BA Degree in International Relations and an MA Degree in Public Policy from the Seoul National University, as well as an MA degree in International Relations from the University of Virginia, USA. His diplomatic career includes postings at the Korean embassies in Israel (1998-2000), China (2000-2003), Vietnam (2006-2008), USA (2011-2013), Iraq (2014-2015).

Ambassador Choe also held various posts at the Korean Foreign Ministry, including serving as Director for

Overseas Mission within the Office of Planning and Coordination (20082009), Director of the Republic of Korea-US Security Cooperation Division in the North American Affairs Bureau (2009-2011) and he worked as Senior Director of the National Security Council Secretariat in the Office of President (2015-2016). Ambassador Choe also served as Director-General for International Policy at the Korean Ministry of National Defense (20162018). Ambassador Choe is married with a son and a daughter.

Independence Day

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QATAR

National Day, the assumption of power by Emir Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani in 1878

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JAPAN

ational Day N (Emperor's Birthday)

LIBYA

New Ambassador of Argentina to Serbia

Economics, from Faculty of Economic Sciences, University of Buenos Aires.

He has published numerous articles and books. He speaks English and French. He is Professor of Introduction to International Relations of the Faculty of Political Sciences of the UCA, and Professor at UBA (Faculty of Law); Catholic University of Salta (International Relations). Also, he is a consulting member of CARI (Argentine Council for International Relations). Hobbies: Sailing and fly fishing.

National Day

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SLOVENIA

Independence and Unity Day, declaration of the results of the Slovenian independence referendum in 1990

JANUARY

01

CUBA

Liberation Day

01

UROŠ BIDER

SLOVAKIA

New CEO of Petrol to Serbia

Independence Day On August 1st, Uroš Bider was appointed the new CEO of Petrol in Serbia thus succeeding Željko Bjelan, who was at the company’s helm since 2013. Companies Petrol Belgrade and BeoGas are members of Petrol Group, the leading energy and oil company in Slovenia and the region of Southeast Europe. Uroš Bider has been working for Petrol for 25 years. He began his career in a retail position in Slovenia. For a number of years he has been one of the managers at Petrol. Bider was the retail director in Croatia, the leader of the retail development project and the retail supervisor in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Montenegro. Since 2013, he has been managing Petrol BH Oil Company d.o.o.

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KAZAKHSTAN

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H.E. ESTANISLAO ANGÉL ZAWELS Mr. Zaweles born on December 15, 1954, in the city of Buenos Aires.

He joined the Foreign Service of Argentina in 1985 and served at the Argentine Mission to the United Nations and to the Argentine Mission to the United Kingdom. Since 2009, he served as Director for Economic Negotiations with the EU, Director for Asia and Oceania and Director General for International Organizations. He has BA of Economics, from University of Poitiers, and BS of

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INTERVIEW

Creating An Incentivized Business Environment

The Republic of Srpska has made significant breakthroughs in creating an incentivized business environment, especially in the segment of harmonization with the standards of the European Union. In addition, the Government of the Republic of Srpska supports the work of the businesstechnological incubator ‘Innovation Centre Banja Luka’, which is occupied mainly by IT companies ALEN ŠERANIĆ Minister of Science and Technology of Republika Srpska

The Government of the Republic of Srpska has recognized the importance of information technologies through the Strategy of Scientific and Technological Development. Information and communication technologies have to be treated as a serious business branch that can, in an incentivized business environment, create products or services for the global market. The Ministry’s priority is creating conditions for advancing science through

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boosting the quality of scientific research work, raising the level of cooperation between science and economy, and supporting young talented researchers

A LOT OF WORK NEEDS TO BE DONE IN THAT RESPECT – ORGANIZATION-, LEGISLATIONAND PLANNING-WISE

Republic of Srpska supports the work of the business-technological incubator ‘Innovation Centre Banja Luka’, which is occupied mainly by IT companies. We can confidently say that Banja Luka, and I hope some other towns soon, will become recognized as so-called smart cities and create attractive export products for the global market.

How did digital technologies change the way public sector communicates and did they expedite business operations?

How do you view the current situation regarding the technological advancement in the region, and how much do we lag behind other European countries?

— The Government of the Republic of Srpska has recognized the importance of information technol-

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ogies through the Strategy of Scientific and Technological Development. In cooperation with private companies, we want to identify the potential for export of IT ser-

vices. The Republic of Srpska has made significant breakthroughs in creating an incentivized business environment, especially in the segment of harmonization with the standards of the European Union.

In addition, the Government of the

— A lot of work needs to be done in that respect – organization-, legislation- and planning-wise. The

Ministry of Science and Technology cannot be the only body engaged in this, but other government ministries need to get involved too.

Science is present in all segments of life. The most important thing is to improve the quality of scientific research, and when that is done, the result is international visibility which is very important, because then you have the opportunity to invite others to work in various research teams and you are given an opportunity to learn. This has both political and socio-economic importance and we can contribute to the momentum in this area in the Republic of Srpska.

What are your ministry's plans for the next 5 years in terms of implementing innovative technologies?

— Information and communication technologies have to be treated as a serious business branch that can, in an incentivized business environment, create products or services for the global market.

The Republic of Srpska has made significant progress in creating an adequate business environment.

The legal framework is, to a considerable degree, aligned with the requirements of the European Union, the Agency for Information Society of the Republic of Srpska and the JU Academic and Research Network of the Republic of Srps-

THE MINISTRY’S PRIORITY IS CREATING CONDITIONS FOR ADVANCING SCIENCE THROUGH BOOSTING THE QUALITY OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH WORK ka - SARNET are functioning, and in 2016, the Microsoft Innovation Center (MIC) was established in cooperation with Microsoft. Nevertheless, further efforts are needed in the development of the ICT sector, especially in the field of human resources. Despite the strong demand for experts in this field, there are not enough skilled workers in the labour market without whom it would not be possible to make the necessary steps in this area. Research shows that the ICT sector is

closely related to innovation in other areas, i.e. the use of human and technological ICT resources has a direct impact on the development of an innovative environment.

Software is increasingly becoming an integral part of non-technological products and processes, which, in the era of the Internet of Things and the Internet of Everything, is gaining on importance.

Could you please cite a few projects that you realized in the pre-

SMART SPECIALIZATION I would also like to mention the term smart specialization. Namely, the development of high-tech and highly competitive companies implies specialization and investment in research and development.

Through smart specialization, the cooperation between certain segments of the economy and scientific research organizations is promoted in accordance with the existing capacities, plans and development strategies, and the expected worldwide trends. If properly used, smart specialization can serve to identify our potential and build emerging industries that can ensure the wider branding of the Republic of Srpska. Smart specialization is a key element of the EU cohesion policy by the year 2020 as it affects the level of consumption and stimulates research and innovation activities. In the context of the Republic of Srpska, our focus is on highly profitable, fast-growing branches of the economy.

vious period, which were significant for economic growth and sustainable business?

— The main task of the Ministry of Science and Technology of the Republic of Srpska is to direct, supervise, encourage and support the development of the scientific, higher learning and technological development sector. This is basically the basis of socio-economic and human progress and the factors for fulfilling the prerequisites for the development of a knowledge-based society in the Republic of Srpska.

Over the past four years, the Ministry has allocated around 7 million KM for the development of science and technology in the Republic of Srpska through its programme and project activities. Since 2007, about 10 million KM was invested in supporting young talented students, under the auspices of the Dr Milan Jelić Foundation.

The Ministry’s priority is creating conditions for advancing science through boosting the quality of scientific research work, raising the level of cooperation between science and economy, and supporting young talented researchers.

The way to achieve this is to realize the idea of 'Five Is', a concept that determines the directions for scientific development, namely institutional development, internationalization, interdisciplinarity, excellence and innovation.

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CORPORATE

Two Decades of a Single Vision Every sixth apple that remains in Serbia ends up in Nectar’s products and that is the beginning of a story of how a family business evolved thanks to the idea to launch a production of healthy food, and subsequently how it became the company with the eighth strongest brand in the region In the twenty years of its operations, Nectar generated over 1 billion euro worth of gross added value (about 3% of Serbia’s GDP in 2017) with over 5,500 people in the Republic of Serbia being financially supported as a result of the company's activities. This was the main message from the presentation of the findings of the "Analysis of the Economic Impact of the Nectar Group in Serbia in the period 1998-2018" on the occasion of the celebration of the company’s 20th anniversary that was held at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia in the presence of state, business and media representatives, as well as business partners.

In order to summarize the achievements from the past 20 years, Nectar engaged the consulting firms Peterhof Consulting, led

by Dragan Lončar, professor at the Faculty of Economics in Belgrade, and Alba Partners. Based on a specially developed methodology, the company was analyzed from the aspect of the gross added value created by its operations in the system together with the company’s suppliers and customers in Serbia.

The President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia, Marko Čadež expressed his gratitude to Nectar and said that the company founders, the Radun family and Nectar itself were a proof that Serbia had textbook examples of how a family business should be run.

"Nectar is an example of how entrepreneurs, courageous and innovative people, open to acquiring knowledge and innovations from others, can overcome the greatest challenges that family business

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Professor Dragan Lončar, University of Belgrade Faculty of Economics/Peterhof Consulting, Mihailo Janković, Director Nectar Group, Marko Čadež, president of the PKS and Senad Mahmutović, Secretary of State

faces, recognize and utilize business opportunities in both the domestic and international markets and build a successful, big company - the regional leader in their field – from a small company with good entrepreneurial ideas,” Čadež added. According to him, Nectar also validates the fact that today we have business systems capable of producing the best quality products, building brands that are present in dozens of markets in the world and are successfully fighting off the strongest competition, while being strong investors both at home and abroad. Another thing that is of crucial importance for the future of our economy is to have business people who think strategically in companies with a vision, who know how to develop their businesses and can accurately predict how these businesses will look in the next 20 years.

"If I tell you that every sixth apple that remains in Serbia ends up in Nectar’s products, that will

give you a fair illustration of how much we have accomplished from the moment we registered a family business, with the idea to launch a production of healthy food, to having a company that is the eighth strongest brand in the region,” said Mihailo Janković, Director of Nectar. "For the past 20 years, the company generated over 1 billion euro of gross added value in Serbia and is the only company within top 25 brands in the region that is domestic company and 100% family owned. Thanks to its consolidated revenues, the company was included in the list of 100 most successful companies in Serbia, according to the APR data, and this is what makes us very proud," Mihailo Janković added.

The company also presented its vision by the year 2038. The plan is to generate at least 500 million euro in revenue, and remain not only a regional leader, but also become an important global stakeholder in the healthy food market.

IF THE VISIONARY PLANS OF NECTAR ARE REALIZED BY 2038, THE COMPANY WILL GENERATE OVER 5 BILLION EURO OF GROSS ADDED VALUE THAT WILL REMAIN IN SERBIA

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"If the visionary plans of Nectar are realized by 2038, the company will generate over 5 billion euro of gross added value that will remain in Serbia," said Professor Lončar at the end of the event.

"The basic idea is not only mine but my wife’s too, who wanted to do something beneficial for health. While we were developing this idea, we came across information that nobody at the time of the economic sanctions bought an industrially grown apple and that all the fruit processing plants in the former Yugoslavia had already stopped working. Following this finding, our engineering team quickly designed and built our company buildings that were equipped rather modestly in the beginning. The turning point in our development was the purchase of a primary processing plant in Vladičin Han, a segment of the Delišes Company, and later, when Delišes declared bankruptcy, the entire company where we quickly resumed with fruit processing. All of this helped us to have a more thorough overlook at the development of Nectar. The company, particularly after the acquisition of Fructal, has grown beyond the borders of Serbia and has evolved into an international company with production plants in Slovenia, Macedonia and Serbia. I am proud of all our employees, the family and the current management, and I am proud of the fact that our growth is healthy. I would like to thank all our associates, employees and all of you who came today to share with us the fact that Nectar is a realization of the Serbian dream. Thank you!" said the founder and owner of the Nectar Group, Slobodan Radun.

INTERVIEW

Text: ŽIKICA MILOŠEVIĆ

Young and Growing Supporting friends, extending cooperation

H.E. Mr. SUBRATA BHATTACHARJEE Ambassador of India

India, a friendly country and a fast-growing economy, has a new Ambassador, H.E. Mr. Subrata Bhattacharjee. We used the opportunity to talk to him in the beginning of his term.

India and Serbia have had excellent relations right from the start – from the time of the Declaration of independence of the Dominion and the SFR Yugoslavia, both countries have been dedicated to freedom, anti-colonialism and autonomous development. How this resonates in these times, once again sharply divided world?

— When India gained independence, the world was predominantly bipolar. Therefore, Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) was the need of

the hour for the developing countries to ensure that they were not dominated by either of the world powers. The leaders of India and SFR Yugoslavia played a pioneering role in Non-Aligned Movement.

With the change in geo-politics, the world has now turned multi-polar. But the developing countries still need to ensure that they

developing countries. For example, United Nations is in particular need of urgent reforms. A more representative, legitimate and effective UN Security Council which is reflective of the current geo-political realities is needed more than ever to better address today’s global conflicts and crises. On another front, India has a principled stand

CLOSE COOPERATION AMONG DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, PARTICULARLY BETWEEN SERBIA AND INDIA, CONTINUES AND HELP THE WORLD IN TAKING RIGHT STAND ON MANY MAJOR ISSUES are not dominated by any of the world powers. Despite the change in geo-politics and the transformation of individual nation's perspective, there is a continuing need for protecting a nation's self interest against outside interference. Moreover, many new areas have come up that need cooperation among

on respecting sovereignty and territorial integrity of other nations.

Both Serbia and India share common views on this. Our bilateral ties have strengthened considerably with two recent high level visits - the visit to India by then Serbian PM Vučić in 2017 (now President) and the visit to Serbia by Vice Pres-

ident of India in 2018. Thus, close cooperation among developing countries, particularly between Serbia and India, continues and help the world in taking right stand on many major issues.

How do you evaluate the political situation in the world today?

Will we ever live in peace?

— While the bipolar world that existed till the nineteen hundred eighties has turned multi-polar now, the chances of conflict have not been eliminated. It is true that major powers are now less likely to start a war against each other.

However, we have seen outbreak of regional conflicts in some areas created mainly by outside intervention. Large scale migration caused by continuing regional conflicts has resulted in extreme hardship for the migrants as well as economic and social problems in some transit/receiving countries. Terrorism is another menace that the world will have to live with

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overlooked. Therefore, while India is building skill and infrastructure, India is also emphasising on sustainable development through preservation of environment, use of clean technology, reduction of carbon emission etc, not only in India but also in the world at large.

For example, under International Solar Alliance, India is assisting other countries to promote use of solar power. India itself is targeting annual generation of 175 GW of solar power. India will be happy to work with Serbia in these areas.

for some time. While the enemy is well defined in case a conventional war, terrorist attacks have brought a new dimension in the threat perception. Chances of Weapons of Mass Destructions (WMD) falling in the hands of terrorists are a major source of concern. To tackle this global menace, India proposed, as early as in 1996, a draft ‘Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism’ as part of the broader movement in the international community to strengthen international laws on counter terrorism and for codifying well accepted norms for global cooperation on counter terrorism, into a formal instrument of international law. However, very little progress has been made on this.

It seems, the world will have to live with these problems for many years to come.

India is accumulating wealth, thus transforming from receiver of the capital, into a lender and investor. What investments can we expect in Serbia?

India is a member of BRICS and G-20, an emerging economy at par with China with economic growth and demographic potentials. The future seems quite bright?

— Yes, India is a member of both BRICS as well as G-20. BRICS represents 42% of the world's population. In economic terms, BRICS accounts for 23% of the world's GDP and 16% of global trade. India attaches great importance to this body. After more than a decade of existence, BRICS has developed a robust framework for cooperation. While trade and economy have been the foundation of our cooperation, our endeavours today touch diverse areas of technology, tradition, culture, agriculture, environment, energy, sports, and ICT. G-20 is also a major economic grouping for promoting multi-faceted cooperation among the twenty largest economies of the world. Through the ten years of its existence, G-20 has strived to promote stable and sustainable global growth. This objective is of particular significance for developing countries and emerging economies such as India, more so because G-20 represents 90% of global GDP, 80% of the world trade and more than two-third of the world's population. Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the recent G-20 Summit hosted

by Argentina in Buenos Aires in November-December 2018. The theme of the Summit, “Building Consensus for Fair and Sustainable Development”, is of great importance to India. Globalization has posed many serious economic and

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AFTER MORE THAN A DECADE OF EXISTENCE, BRICS HAS DEVELOPED A ROBUST FRAMEWORK FOR COOPERATION social challenges to the developing countries. There is a serious need to create a rule-based world order.

India participates in these bodies towards that noble goal.

Of course, one of the problems in our countries is human development and infrastructure. In India the population is growing, in Serbia shrinking. Will these problems mark the next step in our developments?

— India accounts for about onesixth of humanity. India also has a young population. By 2020, the average age in India will be 29 mak-

ing it the world's youngest country with 64% of the population in the working age group. India also has the third-largest scientific and technical manpower in the world coming out of 162 universities.

Sectors like Information Technology, Biotechnology etc. that rely heavily on the availability of skill manpower have naturally contributed greatly to India's growth.

Large population also demands creation of adequate infrastructure, often putting pressure on environment. However, the developmental needs of the population coming out of poverty cannot be

THE 150th GANDHI BIRTH ANNIVERSARY Since 2 October 2018, a number of activities have been organized to celebrate 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. A video on his life and quotes was projected in front of City Hall of Belgrade as well as Indian Embassy Chancery. A function was organized to release seven commemorative stamps on Mahatma Gandhi brought out by India Post.

A leading opera singer of Serbia, Ms. Jadranka Jovanovic, sung the favourite bhajan of Mahatama Gandhi, 'Vaishnav Jan To Tene Kahiye Je'.

The video song made for this has been appreciated by many Indians and Serbians. In fact, this bhajan has been sung by leading singers in around 150 countries. Additionally, every month I am going to one Serbian school to speak on Mahatma Gandhi and his ideals. I have seen a warm response from these students. Activities like this will continue till 2 October 2019.

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— With a GDP of US$ 2.597 trillion and 8% GDP growth, India today is the fastest growing large economy in the world. India's annual trade stood at US$ 769 billion growing at 16% per annum.

India has undertaken a number of economic reform measures that have improved India's rank in World Bank's Doing Business Report by 53 positions in past two years. This involved simplification of investment procedure, reduction of paper work, unification of tax structure etc. While India is building its economy, India is also assisting other friendly countries through aid, lines of credit, capacity building and foreign investment. In past three years, Indian companies have invested US$ 40 billion abroad. The total financial commitment in that period is US$ 120 billion. In case of Serbia, Indian companies have already invested in sectors like manufacturing tractors, IT park, food processing, manufacturing aluminum panels, garbage disposal containers, railway equipment etc. Considering that Serbia is a member of EU Customs Union and has FTAs with Russia and many other countries, there is great potential for attracting further investment from India.

Agriculture plays a major role in Serbian economy. In IT sector, India has the capability and Serbia can gain from this expertise. These are the potential areas for Indian companies investing in Serbia.

We met at Stara Planina during the promotion of Hello! Travel: Serbia. Recently India and Serbia abolished visa regime mutually. Can we expect more Indian tourists in Serbia and of course, vice versa?

— India introduced e-Visa for

Serbian nationals in 2016. Under the scheme, Serbians can apply for tourist visa, business visa etc. online and receive the visa by email in few days. Serbia responded positively to this and abolished the visa requirement for Indian nationals in 2017. This has made touristic visits from each other's country easier. So far over two thousand Serbians have taken e-Visa for India online. Similarly, few thousand Indians have availed the visa free facility for travelling to Serbia. This even includes some relatives and friends of mine. With impressive economic growth in India, many Indians are travelling abroad as tourists. Serbia with its beautiful landscape, clean environment and fascinating history & culture can offer much to such Indian tourists.

There is also scope for attracting Indian tourists coming to other countries of the region. India receives many European tourists.

Greater representation of Serbians among them will be a welcome development. In short, the tourism sector offers great potential in the coming years.

Indian culture is one of the few most striking and oldest cultures

in the world, a magic place, incredible, truly, as the slogan says. Your embassy did a lot in cultural cooperation. Popular culture, like yoga, is gaining ground – the people can participate in it. How about some even more contemporary trends? Indian film festivals in more cities of Serbia or perhaps, a band from India performing at Exit Festival as an idea? What are the plans in that field?

as 'Rudra Veena', Tabla, Guitar and 'Stree Shakti' Hindustani Instrumentals, and Indian classical dance performances of Kathak, Bharatnatyam, Pantomime dance ('Where the Shadow Ends') and Katkatha Puppet dance.

During my time this year, I organized an exhibition of embroidery fabrics from Himalayas ('Rumals of Chamba') at National Assembly of Serbia and an exhibition of 70 years of diplomatic rela-

CONSIDERING THAT SERBIA IS A MEMBER OF EU CUSTOMS UNION AND HAS FTAS WITH RUSSIA AND MANY OTHER COUNTRIES, THERE IS GREAT POTENTIAL FOR ATTRACTING FURTHER INVESTMENT FROM INDIA — In today's world, diplomacy is no more restricted to the political domain. Cultural Diplomacy is now one of the focus areas of India's foreign policy initiatives. In that spirit, Indian Embassy in Belgrade lays high emphasis on promoting Indian culture in Serbia.

In past few years, Indian Embassy organized several performances of Indian musical instruments such

tions between India and Yugoslavia at National Archives of Yugoslavia.

There are also plans for some more exhibitions and dance performances from India. These are usually finalized two-three months before the visit. Celebration of International Day of Yoga in Belgrade will of course continue. I deeply appreciate the spontaneous interest Serbians take in Indian culture,

particularly in Yoga. But for their participation, celebration of International Day of Yoga in Belgrade could not have been such a success.

I have taken a new initiative of involving Serbians in performance of Indian dances. During Diwali Dinner at my residence in November this year, a group of Serbian girls performed Indian dances. This trend will continue and I propose to organize more performances of Indian dances by Serbian groups. I am sure this will greatly popularize Indian dances among Serbian youth.

Another welcome development is shooting of Indian movies in Serbia. Bollywood (acronym for Hindi film industry) produces largest number of movies in the world.

Additionally, India has a thriving film industry in regional languages like Tamil, Telugu, Bengali etc.

Four-five such movies have already been shot in Serbia. In October 2018, one such movie 'Soorma' was screened in Belgrade. Shooting of Indian movies in Serbia will not only generate revenue for Serbia but also popularize Serbian tourist spots among Indian tourists. This will in turn attract such Indian tourists to Serbia.

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CORPORATE

We are Constantly Improving Work and Product Quality Process management quality system at Atlantic Grupa is based on a process approach and our own corporate practice, developed in line with the best world standards. In our system, creativity is the most important which we use to upgrade the usual standards and create a dynamic environment that quickly adapts to the changes in the business environment

ANDREJ BELE Head of Strategic Business Unit 'Coffee' at Atlantic Grupa

The Atlantic Grupa is building a strong and unique business excellence system that integrates and combines business process management requirements (ISO 9001), the highest level of product and service safety (FSSC 22000, HACCP, GMP) and environmental management requirements (ISO 14001). "The driving force behind the Integrated System is the philosophy of continuous improvement of all processes, which implies investments in every segment of the business, from procurement, production, development, market research, to communication with our customers," says Andrej Bele, Head of the Strategic Business Unit Coffee at Atlantic Grupa and adds:«50% of total company's investments are allocated to quality development and maintenance, because products are constantly evolving in order to meet the latest needs of consumers, such as the Grand Coffee and Barcaffè brands, which we produce in our four coffee roasting facilities in the region. "

What is your approach to the control of inputs?

— Product quality is a basic prerequisite for the development of all other activities and therefore all the raw materials we use are purchased according to precisely determined standards. Special attention is given to controlling the quality of raw coffee, which is 80% purchased directly from

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the countries of origin. Our coffee route, which we have already presented so many times to the public, involves controlling the raw coffee beans that are tested on the plantation itself, controlling them before loading onto the ships, and another time upon unloading in the ports of Koper, Trieste or Thessaloniki, through which most of the coffee is imported. Minas comes exclusively from Brazil, and Robusta from India, Vietnam and other African and Asian countries. Also, during import, coffee passes all the necessary customs and quality controls, which singles out serious producers and gives an additional guarantee

ty, but also product quality in the market?

— The biggest challenge for this region, where we usually drink the so-called Turkish, freshly roasted and ground coffee, is to gain consumer confidence, and even more to maintain it. All these years we have been trying to inform and educate consumers that there is a quality they can be sure of behind the aroma and taste they like. Therefore, we are always proud to point out that every other cup of coffee in Serbia comes from our plant.

THE EXCISE STAMP VALIDATES THAT THE PRODUCT HAS PASSED THROUGH LEGAL CHANNELS AND ITS ORIGIN, WHICH IS THE BASIS OF A CONSISTENT QUALITY, ON WHICH GRAND COFFEE HAS BEEN BUILDING ITS ORIGINAL RECIPE FOR 20 YEARS NOW of the origin and quality of the coffee we buy. The quality of raw coffee is then controlled before entering one of our four plants, as well as during the production process until each package leaves the production line. In addition, we are connected directly with all our suppliers of materials through a digital platform, so that we can exchange information that is important for managing the quality of other inputs.

Do you think that consumers are educated enough today to recognize not only product securi-

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Still, we can still find inadequately declared coffee of unknown composition and origin in the Serbian market, so product safety remains a challenge for consumers. One of the ways to suppress such unfair competition in our country is to use excise stamps on coffee packaging. We launched this initiative which started to be implemented early this year.

What role should the state play?

How can it help in boosting the quality of products and services?

— As coffee producers, we have to fulfill the requirements of 16 differ-

ent sets of good practice rules for each of our products. On the basis of previous experience I can say that we lack a simplified procedure and uniform supervision of the whole market.

Also, regardless of the fact that, at the Grupa level, we implement unique and modern business standards, such as the Quality System 22000, we have to prove that we are implementing the adopted standards in Serbian productd such as Grand Coffee. For example, in Germany, they accept our certificate of standard for Barcaffè produced in our factory in Slovenia. However, in Belgrade, the same company that issued such certificate has to perform additional checks in our factory and see whether this coffee is manufactured according to the same standards. This is one of the areas where the state could support exporters more, because our coffee is sold in European retail chains such as Aldi Sud (Hofer) Rewe group, Spar and so on, which only confirms that we have developed a corporate practice in managing processes which is, as I underlined earlier, based on the best world practices and standards. If we are investing so much effort into the quality of our products, brands, people, and know-how, of course we need state's support in legislation and supervision, as well as the support from consumer associations, which, through their education on the topic of quality, should raise the consumer expectations when it comes to coffee quality.

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CORPORATE

Quality that Opens any Door In the tide of new investments in recent years, as well as the constant growth of the construction sector in Serbia, Konstruktor Group, as a general contractor, has distinguished itself as one of the leading construction companies in our country thanks to its impressive results

OGNJEN KISIN Executive Director of Konstruktor Group

Konstruktor Group is an example of a healthy and successful domestic company which possesses the know-how and the references that can compare to those of the successful global construction companies.

The year 2018 was the year of numerous awards and recognitions for Konstruktor, including the Golden Gazelle of Serbia award for the fastest growing company in the country.

We have talked to Mr. Ognjen Kisin, Executive Director of Konstruktor Group, about success and the struggle to achieve it.

You have built over 200 different facilities to date, spanning over 500,000 square metres. When and how did you do your first project and how did you implement the last (the 200th)?

— We contracted our first project 15 years ago, shortly after the company was founded. Of course, the size of this facility was much smaller compared to the facilities that we are building today. However, in terms of quality, they do not differ.

If you want to be successful in construction, it does not matter if you are building a 50-square-metre or 50,000-square-metre facility.

The building must be functional and durable.

Thanks to this attitude that quality has no alternative, we somehow made it to 500,000 square metres. For now!

How do you manage to be successful and grow year-on-year?

— By building a very good relationship with clients, the volume of our business has increased yearon-year, and at the same time, we made the inevitable investments into human and material resources in order to offer our customers

OUR INTENTION IS TO CONTINUE TO SOLIDIFY OUR LEADING POSITION IN THE SERBIAN MARKET IN THE FIELD OF DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF PRODUCTION AND LOGISTICS FACILITIES, AS WELL AS VALIDATE OUR REPUTATION OF A RELIABLE CONTRACTOR IN BUILDING OFFICE AND RESIDENTIAL FACILITIE

more than our competitors.

When I say more, I mean to be strong enough as a company to give better offers and faster and better quality solutions.

There are Investors for whom you have built up to 7 facilties.

What is so appealing in your operational format as a construction company to make Investors come back to you?

— Let me continue from my previous answer. Our business operations so far have created a good business reputation for us and the reasons for this are cutting costs for Investors, and adhering to quality and deadlines.

In order to do all of that, you have to have the know-how and professionalism. Of course, you also need to do a lot of work and have a lot of patience.

In the end, one of the main driving forces in our company, and one of the recognizable features of our identity, is that we are being re-hired by Investors, especially the big, reputable and demanding ones.

What benefits does the design and build concept bring to Investors since this is something that Konstruktor Group is known for?

— In this part of the world, the design and build concept started to be implemented not so long ago and it brings many benefits to Investors. Construction com-

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greatest projects, I would have to mention two - Grundfos in Indjija, the largest investment in 2012, and the Lidl Administrative Building, built in 2017 in Stara Pazova.

These are top quality facilities, reputable Investors and we had short deadlines.

panies in Serbia either design or build, which puts a developer into a difficult position where they have to be a judge in the case there are discrepancies during project implementation.

Design and build implies that a developer hires one company and thus has one partner who is responsible for the entire process, from the beginning to the very end of the construction.

The main prerequisite is for the company to be strong both in design and construction. By applying this concept, Investors get safety, speed and a guarantee that what they want will be done.

How important is the Golden Gazelle of Serbia award for Konstruktor Consulting, since we know that the award was given based on a very detailed analytical survey done by Bisnode?

— We strive and work toward successes and we achieve it. However, it gives us a great satisfaction when someone validates this through analytical data and gives us this kind of recognition. The 2018 Golden Gazelle 2018 went to Konstruktor’s employees who, owing to their dedication and constant progress, have built every single square metre without stalling.

What are Konstruktor’s ongoing projects?

— In operational terms, at this moment, we have opened the Green Avenue site, a business and residential complex where we are building segments 6, 7, 8 and 9. Then there is the Lidl store in Obrenovac, a cow farm that we are building on behalf of Delta Agrar, construction of the Ada Mall shopping centre, the Stop Shop retail park in Sremska Mitrovica, which is the fifth consecutive facility that we are building for the same developer, the KLP Logistic Centre in Šimanovci, the most modern logistics centre in this part of Europe, of the class “A”, that will be built according to the highest LEED construction standards, Grundfos Biobooster, the pedestrian walkway on Kalemegdan etc.

Which project do you consider the company's greatest success?

— Each constructed facility has a different degree of difficulty and challenges. If I had to single out the

What are the further development directions for Konstruktor Group?

ONE OF THE MAIN DRIVING FORCES IN OUR COMPANY, AND ONE OF THE RECOGNIZABLE FEATURES OF OUR IDENTITY, IS THAT WE ARE BEING RE-HIRED BY INVESTORS, ESPECIALLY THE BIG, REPUTABLE AND DEMANDING ONES

— Our intention is to continue to solidify our leading position in the Serbian market in the field of design and construction of production and logistics facilities in line with turnkey principle, as well as the position of a reliable contractor for office and residential facilities.

From the very beginning, our motto was that quality, professionalism, dedication and honest work have no alternative. This is how we behave towards ourselves, and this is also the approach we have toward our associates.

Year-on-year, regardless of the difficulties, this kind of doing business brings excellent results.

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ECONOMY

Text: ŽIKICA MILOŠEVIĆ

Give Other Cultures a Chance The world of not imposing values

The West is falling apart in terms of economic cooperation (at least Trump's America is drifting away from the rest of the allies in G-7), and the unlikely harmony is emerging in the East, in the mighty land mass of Eurasia.

WESTERN VALUES

Donald Trump might have been the world's worst nightmare when it came to the Iran nuclear deal, but he surprisingly the North Korea issue quite well, after all his half-childish tweets like “my button is bigger, so are my rockets”.

In this part of the world we are not that affected by the economic relations between the USA, the rest of the big economies from the G-7 and the other “first league players” like the Netherlands, Spain or Sweden. We are in the second league, anyway, so the waves are crushing on the G-7 and the westernmost members. But this is the big deal over there! Billions are at stake, and when the elephants fight, the grass is the first to suffer.

In the West, from 1945 onwards, the main cohesive factor was the fact that the core was formed by all the countries from the Judeo-Christian tradition, the liberal parliamentary democracies, like the UK, the USA, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada etc.

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All the others were basically defeated countries in the World War II that had to adopt liberal values, namely Germany, Italy, and Japan.

The others that joined were also the “converts” from non-democratic values such as the former dictatiorships of Greece, Spain and Portugal. The values they all shared were quite obvious - gradual globalisation, anti-isolationism, and anti-damping economies.

True to his “America First“ say-

ment in the US. Trump thinks he is right, ready to face six other leaders from the G-7 and then leave, make a surprising peace deal with the Koreans, and even causing someone to nominating him for the Nobel Peace Prize. Erratic as he may be, Trump is here to stay at least for the next two and a half years.

Some have even proposed forming G-6, with America kicked out. Lo and behold, the relations between Russia and the EU suddenly became warmer. The trouble is that the Western world is so compact in values and the way of thinking and doing business that the slightest disharmony leads to big waves. Unpleasant ones, at that!

EASTERN VALUES

The East decided they did not agree on so many things. The religions are very different – from Eastern Christianity to Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism. The state systems are also so different – some Eastern countries are full-fledged parliamentary democracies, some are republics with strong leaders,

THE SCO IS INCLUSIVE, EVER GROWING, AND MEMBERS ARE NOT IMPOSING VALUES ON EACH OTHER. THAT WOULD BE FUTILE ANYWAY ing, Trump is not refraining from building walls between the US and another NAFTA member, Mexico (it's only a promise, so far), imposing taxes against the EU and Canada as his closest allies (cue angry tweets against Justin Trudeau), and insisting that De Niro is “a person of low intelligence” since has failed to notice the record low unemploy-

some are single-party states, some are Islamic republics, and some secular and even atheists. No common ground at all. Also, in some countries the market rules, while in others, the almighty state controls everything. Or the majority, at least! So, the first Eastern idea was that there is no idea encompassing them all. Or, rather, they are a mo-

INCLUSIVENESS IS GROWTH The SCO has become inclusive and is ever growing, with a possible extension to Iran. Maybe the West was more like that after the WW2.

It seems like Orwell's Eurasia is emerging, albeit in a in a benevolent form.

The West is yet to resolve the bitter inner conflicts. We wish godo luck to both of them! Give peace and different cultures a chance!

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saic of ideas, that used to be in conflict for centuries, but now want to cooperate. What is the reason behind this? Why all of a sudden?

They are fed up with being poor and underdeveloped. They want to lead the world. They don't want to impose their values on others, because theat is futile anyway.

At the upcoming 18th Meeting of the Council of Heads of Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)—the first summit since the expansion of its membership in 2017 when India, Pakistan, the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Tajikistan and the Republic of Uzbekistan joined - India and Pakistan, that used to be fierce enemies for decades, joined the club under the Chinese leadership, although they had serious misunderstandings with some members (India, at least). That was pushed aside!

In the meantime, they have launched the SCO University, and cultural and educational cooperation programmes. Investing and amassing welath are the main goals, as well as getting to know each other and respecting one another. Not imposing values, like in the West. Also, if someone “derails” a bit, it's no big deal. Arts, media and youth-exchange programmes are the next step. The basic ideas are “reciprocal trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for cultural diversity and pursuit of common development, as well as new concepts of security and cooperation” as advocated by China, and visible in One Road, One Belt initiative.

CORPORATE

Belgrade is Growing Taller

Designers of high-rise buildings must also consider climatic conditions. Do you know how?

Alongside the evident increase in the construction of residential and commercial buildings, it is also noticeable that Belgrade is growing taller. For highrise buildings that can reach heights of up to 100 metres, it is essential to implement certain safety measures during construction, in order to ensure that works are conducted safely, in a high-quality manner and in adherence with envisaged deadlines.

Design architects authoring projects for tall buildings must consider, amongst other things, local climatic conditions and their impact on specific structures.

That's precisely why state-of-theart technology for modelling structures has been developed, enabling the creation of appropriate scale models and wind tunnel testing in order to analyse the impact of this significant climatic factor and prevent against any potential problems as a result of the strong winds that are characteristic of certain locations.

A good example of such a system of checks was applied in the case of the Skyline Belgrade

project. Given that this complex will comprise three towers, scale model tests were performed with the aim of determining the tone of resonance oscillation and the behaviour of all the structures of the complex in the case of impacts from the strong winds that are typical for Belgrade.

Testing was carried out in London, using a wind tunnel that was specially designed and constructed for this purpose, which was able to provoke, imitate and support all impulses that could possibly occur during the use of these buildings.

Given that this residential-busi-

DESIGN ARCHITECTS AUTHORING PROJECTS FOR TALL BUILDINGS MUST CONSIDER, AMONGST OTHER THINGS, LOCAL CLIMATIC CONDITIONS AND THEIR IMPACT ON SPECIFIC STRUCTURES

ness complex is being constructed on an elevated and open surface, and that the adjacent park is also undergoing renovation, the landscape architect got task to design the arrangement of trees in such a way that the canopy of treetops forms a natural wind barrier and thus further slows the force of the wind, at the same time creating microclimate conditions favourable to the structures of the complex.

Skyline Belgrade, as a complex comprising three towers – a central business tower and two residential towers, will provide its future tenants with quality and safety at the very heart of central Belgrade, on the famous Kneza Miloša Street. Project investor AFI Europe has been present on the Serbian market since 2005 and has proven with its projects – including the iconic Airport City Belgrade and Central Garden developments – that it is a market leader in terms of architectural and urban-planning achievements. The exclusive sale of apartments has been entrusted to Serbia's leading real estate consultancy, CBS International, part of the Cushman & Wakefield Group.

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CORPORATE

What Attracts And Keeps The Best Leaders Today To connect people and create networks using processes and technology – to become organizational architects Does the role of a leader change in such an environment, and if it does, in which way?

TATJANA ŠOKČIĆ Director at HR CENTAR

We all need to connect our needs and values with organizational needs and values in order not only to be productive and loyal, but to become catalysts of influence and change in our organizational networks.

Companies that operate in Serbia have been increasingly highlighting lack of workforce as a limiting factor to growth. What is your take on that?

— There certainly is an ongoing question defining who is „the right person“, what is an ideal profile of the candidate for a certain position. Above all, are the expectations always rational and real? And I meen on both sides, employees and employers.

Also, a traditional model of the educational system is not in alignment with fast changing needs of a modern society – it often produces experts that market doesn`t need and on the other hand doesn`t produce enough experts that are in high demand.

them to grow and develop skills, even change line of work to adjust to market needs. Another important action is to invest in future employees, through scholarships, internships, dual education programs etc.

Basically, enhancing their role in a society, companies play a vital part of supporting each others growth. Imagine this as a great network where companies are linked with its employees and external factors as well. Like an eco system, inter-dependent network requiring adaptive responses, ethical, with sense of belonging and worth. Companies that function as these Eco systems, connect people inside, encouraging them to grow and feel as an integrative and much needed part of the system, but also connect internal network with stakeholders, market, political and environmental trends, to ensure they adapt to changes in extenal eco-system.

How can investments in personal growth and development of individual workers in a company increase the growth of its results?

— We all need to connect our needs and values with organiza-

ANOTHER IMPORTANT ACTION IS TO INVEST IN FUTURE EMPLOYEES, THROUGH SCHOLARSHIPS, INTERNSHIPS, DUAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS

What can companies do in such a situation to attract and retain adequate staff?

— There are in fact a few options for the companies to be proactive in such an environment. One certainly is participating in education of current employees, encouraging

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— Such new Eco leadership paradigm requires from the leaders to adopt more integrative and holistic approach. To connect people and create networks using processes and technology – to become organizational architects. The role of a leader is to recognize that the environment we work in day after day is essential to our psychological and spiritual well being, our creativity and productivity.

Therefore, most successful leaders actively work on humanizing the workplace, being ethical, engage positively with local communities and give in order to receive. As progressive thinkers, they lead the change in protecting not only the workplace one, but the whole natural environment. And they rise this awareness in people around them and inspire action.

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tional needs and values in order not only to be productive and loyal, but to become catalysts of influence and change in our organizational networks. The way we approach this particular leadership coaching is through five frames process with a goal to : Reveal and develop a grounded and confident self. Clarify values and define what brings meaning, joy and contentment to become the person you desire to be.

Improve team and social relationships as they are vital to success. Our ability to connect and influence depends on our ability to relate and respond to others with confidence.

Align leadership with our personality, improving our leadership capability so we could mobilize leadership in others Network analysis (thinking) - gain perspective of a bigger picture, connect people, power and processes to produce desired outcomes Adapt to change, act in accordance with bigger picture patterns, make bold strategic decisions, think more creatively, see opportunities.

What is your advice to companies when it comes to managing the workforce?

— Be open to diversity and inclusion, inspire change, humanize workplace and engage people, focus on real, individual developmental needs of people. Dont be afraid to encourage dialogue and dissent, have an open communication to create healthy network that can not be easily broken. That is how you will keep the right people.

And that is how you will attract others that are right for you.

CORPORATE

Winter At The Villa ‘Natural Wood’ – Zlatibor

The villa Natural Wood is located in the most beautiful and definitely the most peaceful part of Zlatibor. The villa’s position is as such that it ensures the perfect peace, far from the urban centre of the Zlatibor Mountain and yet, close enough to have everything you need nearby

This newly built complex sits on the stunning hills of the Vlaovina, overlooking Čigota, Tornik and the magnificent sunsets of Zlatibor, but is also close to the centre of the town of Zlatibor which is just two kilometres from the villa.

Here you will be able to enjoy the magic of nature and peace far from the hustle and bustle of city, as well as entertaining activities that will complement your stay on this mountain which attracts an increasing number of tourists every day.

The villa Natural Wood perfectly blends in with the surroundings and

is built from natural materials, used for in construction in this area for centuries, and in a way that people in the past used to build houses. Its beauty stands out the most in winter when the mountain snow accentuates its traditional, yet modern combination of pine, stone and earth-ceramics is beautifully integrated into the natural environment of Zlatibor.

It is this combination of natural materials and the peaceful environment, plus the spa available to the villa’s guests, that are a guarantee for a perfect winter holiday with the people you love.

The villa also has available all

THE VILLA NATURAL WOOD PERFECTLY BLENDS IN WITH THE SURROUNDINGS AND IS BUILT FROM NATURAL MATERIALS

INFO: modern communication channels so you can remain in contact with the entire world thanks the super fast wireless Internet which you might need if you intend to do a little bit of work too.

If you want to enjoy unforgettable peace this winter, being pampered in a spa while it is snowing heavily outside, and feeling the warmth of home even when you are on vacation, then the villa Natural Wood - the perfect blend of traditional and modern – is the right address for your short break in nature, or a longer vacation.

Enjoy your holiday at Zlatibor’s Natural Wood Villa and rest assured that you have chosen the best for yourself!

The accommodation capacity of the Natural Wood Villa complex consists of: • Apartments with 1 separate bedroom (2-4 persons), central villa • Natural Wood Residence with 3 bedrooms (6-8 persons), separate log cabin • Luxury apartment with 2 bedrooms (3-6 persons), separate log cabin • Studio apartment (2 persons) If you are travelling with a group, you can rent the entire villa and two separate log cabins. villanaturalwood@gmail.com

23

CHANGE, BUT NOT TOO MUCH

The Race to Succeed Angela Merkel Germany’s CDU hopefuls duke it out in Düsseldorf

In the 1950s West Germany’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) reassured wary voters that it would deliver “no experiments”. So it is striking to see the party, languishing in opinion polls and tiring after 13 years in government, suddenly revitalised by an almost unprecedented innovation: a leadership election.

Having mustered three serious candidates to replace Angela Merkel as party chairperson, the CDU has become intoxicated with the possibility of change—even as Mrs Merkel hopes to remain as chancellor until 2021. Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, Friedrich Merz and Jens Spahn are a study in contrasts, lending the proceedings an air of competition far removed from the usual CDU stitch-up. This matters, for the winner, to be elected by 1,001 delegates at a congress in Hamburg on December 7th, may sooner or later replace Mrs Merkel as chancellor. “It is very sexy to be a member of the CDU these days,” says Oliver Wittke, a junior economics minister.

Admittedly that was not the

24

first word to spring to mind this week as 4,000 predominantly grey-haired party troops packed an exhibition hall near Düsseldorf airport to see the would-be leaders in action. But the party is delighting in its sense of renewal. The heartiest applause of the night went not to a candidate but a questioner from the audience who revealed that he joined the

stronghold, the state’s blend of wealthy cities, rust-belt industry and sleepy countryside mirrors Germany as a whole. The CDU won a surprise victory in a state election here last year, instantly elevating its local leader, Armin Laschet, into one of the party’s national stars (and, say some, a future chancellor). The candidates were thus keen to impress.

IT IS VERY SEXY TO BE A MEMBER OF THE CDU THESE DAYS,” SAYS OLIVER WITTKE, A JUNIOR ECONOMICS MINISTER party three weeks ago. A homecoming feel added to the occasion: Messrs Merz and Spahn are from the surrounding state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s largest, and Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer used to run nearby Saarland.

The event was the sixth, and most important, of eight regional beauty contests in the run-up to Hamburg. The 296-strong North Rhine-Westphalia delegation there will far exceed that of any other state. Long a left-wing

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On stage Mr Merz, a former party hero squeezed out of politics

by Mrs Merkel years ago, jabbed at his old rival by urging the party to stop aping the Social Democrats, its junior coalition partner. His charisma appeals to members who have grown tired of Mrs Merkel’s centrist equivocations, but recent gaffes, especially on the asylum guarantee in Germany’s constitution, highlight his long absence from politics. Perhaps for that reason polls make Ms Kramp-Karren-

bauer (pictured) the clear favourite among CDU supporters (of whom the delegates to Hamburg are not necessarily representative).

After a slow start to the campaign, the candidates have begun sniping at each other, albeit in newspaper interviews rather than on stage, over migration and how to defeat the far right. Yet for all the hubbub, the debate has failed to ignite properly. All want to appear fresh, but without rejecting the party’s successful past. In Düsseldorf Mr Merz and Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer, the front-runners, touched on defence, taxation and foreign policy, but seemed most interested in convincing the crowd that they could restore the CDU to its proper place as a Volkspartei, with over 40% of the vote. (Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer points out that she achieved that feat in Saarland, while Mr Merz was off making a fortune in the private sector.) Today it hovers around 27% in polls.

So for all the talk of party renewal, it is difficult to discern a hunger for revolution. Over beer and sausages, party members in Düsseldorf spoke warmly of all three candidates. Many of the delegates to Hamburg, a hotch-potch of state representatives, local politicians and party apparatchiks, have not yet decided whom to back. The mood is Merkelism without Merkel, or perhaps even with her: the candidates all say they will happily cohabit with her as chancellor (though in Mr Merz’s case that seems implausible). “Many people in the party are looking for some change,” says Günter Krings, head of the North Rhine-Westphalia CDU group in Germany’s parliament. “But not too much, otherwise we wouldn’t be Christian Democrats.” Experiments are fine, so long as the result is predictable.

From The Economist, published under licence. The original article, in English, can be found on www.economist.com

CORPORATE

Making Whisky is Passion

Our job is to save and guard the integrity of our Scotch whisky, and by that I mean when you taste Chivas Regal, it is the same as yesterday, today and tomorrow. That’s the art of blending; to maintain the consistency of taste and quality year after year father was always for responsible drinking. He told us that we shouldn’t drink until we were over 18. So, I didn’t start to drink whisky until I was 20.

COLIN SCOTT Custodian Master Blender

In the 19th century Aberdeen, James Chivas started experimenting with some of the aged whiskies laid out in his grocery store cellar; a visionary act that would later change the Chivas Brothers’ story forever. Central to the ethos of the Chivas blend is ‘maintaining the exceptional’. Each and every cask of whisky has a unique signature taste. The final character of the spirit is influenced by an almost infinite number of variables, many of those focused on the not-so-humble cask.

Colin Scott, Chivas Regal Master Blender, visited Belgrade in November. He developed an early passion for whisky, as he grew up next to an Orkney distillery.

His experiences in production started in the company’s bottling plant in Leith and on its closure, he moved to the Newbridge bottling plant. Here, he progressed through the Package Quality and Spirit Quality departments, eventually joining the Blending team in Paisley.

In 1989 he became Master Blender for Chivas Brothers after learning the traditions and highly-skilled art of Scotch whisky blending from his predecessor, Jimmy Lang.

In recognition of his contribution to the Scotch whisky industry, Colin was appointed a Master of the Quaich in 2008, having previ-

ously been inducted as a Keeper of the Quaich – Scotland’s most prestigious Scotch whisky Society – in 1998.

In this interview, we are chatting to Colin about his background, the Chivas house style, his favourite food and whisky pairings.

We asked Colin Scott what the secret of a good whisky and his reply was “every whisky is good for someone”.

“It’s like when you go to the restaurant, there are a lot of things on the menu, and you choose what you like. It is the same with whisky; they all have their different attributes, characters and

Does the taste for whisky change over time?

— In general, as people grow older their enjoyment of Scotch whisky increases, but also their go-to whisky may change depending on their mood at the time.

With its many family members, Chivas Regal is a classic go-to Scotch. There are statistics which show that consumers who have started drinking the more pungent “Smoky peaty” whiskies tend to migrate towards the gentler “Speyside style” whiskies over time.

What food goes well with whisky?

— You can enjoy whisky with your lunch, or with your dinner. Maybe an older whisky at the end of the

TO BE A MASTER BLENDER, IT’S A DEDICATION AND PASSION. IT’S AN ART. IT TAKES FROM 8 TO 10 YEARS TO BECOME A BLENDER. YOU NEED A GOOD NOSE, YOU NEED TIME AND EXPERIENCE, AND YOU NEED PASSION flavours. So it’s not the case that one is better than the other. For us they are all fantastic and very different. It’s your personal opinion whether you like one better than the other, because what you like, I may not like, and what I like, you may not like. It doesn’t make it a bad whisky.”

What was your first whisky experience?

— Both my Grandfather and Father were in the Whisky business and I grew up around distilling malt whisky, and subconsciously learnt a lot about Scotch whisky. My

meal, or a younger one at the beginning. For instance, Chivas Regal 18 goes well with a steak, or warm chocolate pudding, while Chivas Regal 25 is good to consume with cheese or coffee and cigar.

How many Chivas blends do you make?

— When I started blending, there was only one Chivas Regal – Chivas Regal 12 years old, and that was it. It was 1997 when I created Chivas Regal 18. And then, in 2007, I created Chivas Regal 25, followed

by Chivas Regal Extra. As I retired from Blending two years ago,

Chivas is now safe-guarded by the next generation of Blenders under our Director of Blending, Sandy Hyslop – they created the latest one – Chivas Regal XV. Chivas XV, a 15-year old whisky, is selectively finished in the most prized of Grande Champagne Cognac casks, and it was presented for the first time to Serbian market on an exclusive „The Blend“ event. Chivas believes in the power of blending in life, as well as in Scotch.

Do you have plans for a new Chivas brand?

— We have a very active new product development department within the business. They are looking at innovations; new products for the future. They are also looking for different markets, including Serbia. Our job is to save and guard the integrity of our Scotch whisky, and by that I mean when you taste Chivas Regal, it is the same as yesterday, today and tomorrow. We have to be very sure that we maintain consistency as each year Chivas 12 may have a new formula. That might mean that some whiskies won’t be available, and some more available. So, what you find is that the number of whiskies we use to blend Chivas 12 goes up and down each year. And that is the art of blending – to ensure that we have the same smooth rich taste yesterday, today and tomorrow and to maintain the consistency of taste and quality year after year.

Is being a master blender a way of life?

— To be a master blender, it’s a dedication and passion. It’s an art.

It takes from 8 to 10 years to become a blender. You need a good nose, you need time and experience, and you need passion.

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INTERVIEW

Text: ŽIKICA MILOŠEVIĆ

We Can Go Much Faster!

Our situation is so difficult that we need everything

RADOJKA NIKOLIĆ Biznis i Finansije magazine

Radojka Nikolić, a true savant and a brilliant mind in the field of economics and business, analyzes for Diplomacy and Commerce magazine current trends in the world of economics and demystifies the floscules we hear everywhere. Her clear-headed reasoing is a valuable voice in today's turbulent times.

Serbia occupies the 48th place on the Doing Business List which is not that bad. However, Nebojša Katić has said recently that the list was fiction because Georgia and Macedonia are in the top spot regardless of the situation with foreign investments in these two countries not being good at all. How relevant is the Doing Business List?

— Mr. Katić is, of course, for the most part, right. The list, compiled by the World Bank, is fiction or rather, I would call it yet another complex of ours which came about as a consequence of living life under sanctions and in isolation in the 1990s. I am confident that this period, when first Yugoslavia and

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later Serbia were anathematized, has caused so many frustrations at both national and social level, in as much that we now blindly accept any offer that would prove that we are a part of the world which is the same world that had rejected us back in the day. The same thing applies to the Doing Business (DB) List. First, we could hardly wait to be ranked and once we were ranked, it was the most quoted information used to prove that the Serbian economy was advancing.

The authorities (regardless of who

metre every year.

But what does the World Bank exactly measure with this list?! The DB covers 11 areas of doing business in close to 190 countries. It measures “the ease of doing business”, meaning the ease of launching a business, issuing of building permits, electricity supply, registering ownership, obtaining loans, protecting minority investors, paying taxes, cross-border trade, implementation of contracts and resolution of insolvency. So, all of these parametres are important for the ease of doing business in certain countries. However, there are a number of countries in which the legal solutions are good, but everything looks completely different in practice. You have to ask yourself who does the World Bank collect the data from? The data comes from laws and regulations, the associates of the DB list, the government of the observed country, regional offices of the World Bank and business people from companies they pick. All in all, there could be arbitrariness in the collected data.

THE RECIPE FOR STOPPING MIGRATION IS QUITE SIMPLE – CREATE A STATE WHERE LIFE IS GOOD AND EVERYBODY WILL STAY was in power at the time) benefitted from this, especially when the used methodology was changed and we appeared to have made „a reformatory leap“. That happened in 2016 when we were ranked 47th on the DB list. It seemed that we jumped 44 places because only in 2014, we were ranked 91st.

Of course that we did not make such a leap. The thing is that, in the meantime, the World Bank had changed the applied methodology, in addition to changing one para-

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In the case of smaller countries, like Serbia, there is an additional problem where the data for the Doing Business List is collected and ranked only in the biggest business centre in the country (meaning Belgrade).

So, you can see for yourself how much we value the DB list. Yes, it is an indicator of sorts, but it is by no means, crucial. The ranking on this list means more to smaller countries which are trying to prove themselves internationally,

rather than developed economies which are never asked about their DB ranking.

Do you think that the growth of the Serbian economy, which has been chronically small for years, is now somewhat higher and sufficent to pull Serbia out of the crisis and prevent the migration from the country?

— Of course, a 4 or 5 percent growth is not enough and I have been reiterating this whenever I could, for several years now. If the global economy is growing at the rate of 3 percent per annum, or if China and India are recording a 7 or 8 percent growth, our current growth rate is slow because we are seriously lagging behind the developed economies. To illustrate this let me just say that our living standard is 1/3 of that in the developed EU countries. This means that, in order to catch up, we need an annual growth rate of above 7 percent because none of these developed economies would willingly stagnate and wait for us to catch up. Another good indicator of how much we are falling behind the developed economies is Portugal.

Back in 1989, Portugal (population 10 million) and Serbia (as a part of the former Yugoslavia) had the GDP of $5,900. Today, Portugal's GDP is around $20,000 per capita, and ours is $5,800 which means that their living standard is three times higher than ours. This is the best illustration of how much we are falling behind and how much we need to speed through the reforms, rather than going at a snail's pace.

Do we actually need technological development, and not the development that is based on having factories that pay Asian-level salaries for low qualified workforce?

— Serbia's position is, unofortunately, a rather difficult one since we need everything – fast technological development and the 4th industrial revolution, as well as the so-called “screwdriver industry” and pairing cables by colour. The question is how long is this going to last because the world is being conquered by electric cars. But, joking aside, I think that the state has to have a strategic direction in terms of what it wants to develop and what kind of economy it wants. If it wants to develop agriculture and processing industry, then it has to invest money in them first and boost the workforce potential. If it wants to develop machine industry, robotics, automatics and similar, then it has to focus on these segments.

This is what many countries that advanced fast have done. When you start supporting one segment, financially- and institutionally-wise, then development is very easily recognized and achieved. A lot hinges on the state!

Speaking generally, and despite most Balkan and Eastern European states joining the EU, do you think that the growth in this part of the world is insufficient and inequality between the EU states too high that it resulted in Bulgaria's population being reduced by 2 million and Ukraine's by 5 million? Also, Lithuania and Estonia, which are doing well overall, are also experiencing mass emigration. What is the solution for this?

— Everybody should live where they feel good. The world has become a global village. The Romanians and Bulgarians have advanced nicely with the generous help of the European Union primarily for geo-political reasons. But that is a whole different story. Of course, everybody rushed to the developed

Europe after living in the Eastern European „warehouse“ for decades.

The similar thing happened to other nations and countries that you have mentioned. The recipe for stopping migration is quite simple – create a state where life is good and everybody will stay. On top of that, others, that you certainly do not expect to come, will come. The point is that everybody is looking for a better life. It is up to an individual person to find the location for that better life, but nobody is immune to it.

Is Trump's claim of „Putin asking him for help because of his accumulated riches“ realistic or maybe it is his bragging about

has not. And what about Italy which ever since it introduced euro as national currency, has been faring badly and is now even defying the European Commission with its budget?

— I had an opportunity to ask in Brussels, the centre of the EU, a high representative of „the Brussels bureaucracy“ a similar question regarding the economic crisis you have mentioned. Their reply was that Greece and Italy had to be viewed as a „special case“.

I understood this to mean that the EU will turn their blind eye to these two countries. There are many examples from the past of certain EU countries viewed as „an exception“ or „a special case“. Bear

THE DOING BUSINESS LIST PLAYS ON OUR COMPLEXES BECAUSE OF THE YEARS THAT THE COUNTRY SPENT IN ISOLATION „boosting the US economy by cutting back on regulation“?

— I am not an expert on the US economy, but statistical data show that their economy has been recording significant growth rates – unemployment has been reduced to around 3 percent, which is quite low, and this year, their economy grew to close to 3.5 percent.

Also, Trump kept his promise and reduced tax for his fellow millionaires. However, it is very difficult to ascertain at the moment whether these things expedited the development and increased employment, or maybe we are only now seeing the effects of Obama's policies. As you know, people are polarized about the results of Trump's presidency.

What can Europe do apropos „the crisis in the South“? Portugal, Spain and Ireland have managed to pull through, but Greece

in mind that the EU is not only an economic but also a political union. Depending on the current circumstances, sometimes economic situation can be used to exert political pressure. And this rule can be literally applied to any country you have mentioned in your question.

How will Great Britain manage to get itself out of the negotiations with the EU during Brexit? How is that going to affect the rest of the EU and how the UK?

— I never worry about the British.

They are incredibly skillful people, both individually and in the mass.

They have been very manipulative with the way they are leaving the Union, with some central figures even admitting they lied and used false arguments. There is no denying, however, that they have achieved their goal. We are yet to see, in a few years' time, why this goal was so important to them.

Everything they do is long-term which is also why this period of exiting the Union has been so long.

The British are thorough and always striving to reduce their losses to the minimum. This summer, I read a lot in newspapers about the talks between the EU and Great Britain and it is unbelievable to see how the British leave a meeting as soon as they get an answer that does not sit well with them. The meetings continue after that and only after the fourth or the fifth one, it becomes quite apparent that they got what they wanted. So, I am not worried about the British.

But I have to note that the EU is facing a new, big reconstruction and it remains to be seen what will happen afterward.

One of the few good things that the current government has done is investing in infrastructure and their fascination with railways and roads. To quote Nebojša Katić again, do we need to invest more in these segments, particularly interior roads and motorways like the ones from Negotin to Belgrade and from Novi Pazar to Jagodina?

— It is only logical that we need to take care of the entire infrastructure in Serbia first. We, the people who live here, need infrastructure in order to have better living and working conditions. Only after we do that, we can think of foreign investors who also, like us, need a good infrastructure. But, this story about international railways and roads is partly derived from the EU's recommendations for a better integration in the Western Balkans, and partly from China which is keen to see its goods having a better passability through Europe. As usual, we go for „we'll have whatever you are offering“, which is good for everyone else, but not for us.

THE FUTURE How do you see the future of the world and Europe in the light of China's development, and in particular in the light of the One Belt, One Road project? Is this a development chance for us and Eastern Europe?

— Unfortunately, Serbia is a country without a clear strategy for economic development. Politically, we are willing to talk to anyone, in every corner of the world, and we advocate cooperation and peace. And then, in this disorientated state, China approaches us with its several-centuries-long plan called One Belt, One Road, and we accept it. Bear

in mind that we have done absolutely nothing to deserve this, but only have a good geo-political position since we are situated on their route from the Greek port of Piraeus to Central Europe. Now that we have found ourselves in such situation, yes, we can say that China is our chance. But I can also confidently say that many agreements concerning this cooperation were done to our detriment.

Simply put, we were poor negotiators, or rather the Chinese were better ones. We still have a lot to learn which, unfortunately, makes our road to better life and higher living standard even longer.

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PEOPLE & EVENTS

11 DAY OF ARMISTICE NOV

The reception on the occasion of the 11th November - the Day of Armistice in the First World War - was held at the French Embassy in Belgrade. Serbian public and culture figures of Serbia

IN THE FIRST WORLD WAR

H.E. Branislav Mićunović, Mr. Nećko Krupalija, H.E.Gordan Bakota and H.E. Augusto José Pestana Saraiva Peixoto

H.E. Frederic Mondoloni

14 VILLEROY & BOCH NOV

CULINARY WORLD CUP IN LUXEMBOURG

H.E. Kati Csaba

In preparation for the upcoming 2018 Villeroy & Boch Culinary World Cup in Luxembourg, The Serbian Junior Chefs Club in cooperation with the Ambassador of Canada H.E.

Kati Csaba & Mr. Nećko Krupalija organized a rehearsal and displayed the dishes prepared by its junior culinary team. Event was held at the Canadian Embassy Residence.

H.E. Kati Csaba with the spouse and H.E. Harry Richard James Kandou, Ambassador of Indonesia with his wife

15 NATIONAL INDEPENDENCE DAY NOV

welcomed the French Ambassador to Serbia Frederic Mondoloni. The French Embassy and the French Institute have staged an exhibition titled "Our History, Our Memories."

OF THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND

The marking of National Independence Day of the Republic of Poland and the Armed Forces' Day was held at the

Metropol Palace Hotel on 15th November. The reception was attended by diplomatic corps, and public figures from culture and politics.

Zoran Djordjević, Minister of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs with a diplomat from the Polish Embassy

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www.diplomacyandcommerce.rs

H.E. Sheikh Mubarak Bin Fahad Al-Thani, the Qatari Ambassador and H.E. Mohammed K. M. Nabhan, the Palestinian Ambassador

20 SECOND BITEF NOV

DONOR DINNER HELD

After the fantastic success of the first Bitef donor dinner, another donor dinner was held by Bitef in cooperation with I & F Group, on November 20th, 2018 at the Square Nine Hotel. On this occasion, the organizers shared with business partners, sponsors and VIP guests the success of the 52nd Bitef and presented

Nataša Ninković actress

21 ALGERIAN NOV

NATIONAL DAY

theatrical tendencies that will mark the next festival.

During the evening, many guests had the opportunity to take part in the auction of NEW TENNIS ACTIVITIES and the works of our renowned artists Ivan Grubanova, Mileta Prodanović, Uroš Djurić and Jelena Janković, and thus become part of the BITEF FAN CLUB.

H.E. Sem Fabrizi, EU Delegation

Celebration of the 64th anniversary of the outbreak of the National liberation war of November 1st 1954 was marked by the Algerian Embassy in Belgrade. At the reception in Belgrade’s Hilton Hotel, organized on November 21st, were present Mr. Veroljub Arsić, Vice-President of the National

Assembly, Mr. Zoran Djordjević, Minister of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs, Serbian officials, members of the diplomatic corps, Serbian and Algerian business people, public and religious figures, members of the Association of Friends of Algeria and members of the Algerian community in Serbia.

H.E. Frédéric Mondoloni, H.E. Andrea Orizio and H.E. Abdelhamid Chebchoub

H.E. Abdelhamid Chebchoub, Algerian Ambassador

28 SERBIA AND LEBANON NOV

BOOST ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION

The Foreign Ministers of Serbia and Lebanon have agreed during high-level talks in Belgrade to strengthen commercial ties and enhance economic cooperation across four main sectors; technology, agriculture, tourism and

Gebran Bassil, the Lebanese Foreign Minister and Ivica Dačić

pharmaceutical industry. Lebanese Foreign Minister, Gebran Bassil said he recognized Serbia as a viable economic partner and praised the government for having the political conviction to overcome Serbia’s economic challenges.

Mrs. Jelena Sadler, Michel Naim Aoun, President of Lebanon and Brent Sadler

MORE PHOTOS ON

www.diplomacyandcommerce.rs

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PEOPLE & EVENTS

28 DIWALI CELEBRATION NOV

ORGANIZED AT INDIAN EMBASSY RESIDENCE

A reception dinner was hosted by Ambassador of India to Serbia H.E. Mr. S. Bhattacharjee to celebrate ‘‘Diwali - Festival of Lights” on Wednesday, 28th November 2018. The event was attended by senior officials of Serbian Government, friends of

India, members of diplomatic corps, and prominent representatives from business, media and other fields.

Speaking on the significance of Diwali, Ambassador Bhattacharjee highlighted the commonalities between the culture of India and Serbia.

H.E. Tomáš Kuchta, the Czech Ambassador, H. E. Subrata Bhattacharjee, the Indian Ambassador and H.E. Gordan Bakota, the Croatian Ambassador

29 UNITED ARAB NOV

EMIRATES STATE DAY

The Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Serbia celebrated tonight at Belgrade's Hyatt Hotel the 47th anniversary of the establishment of the Emirate and the 100th anniversary of the birth of the first UAE President, Sheikh

Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. The UAE Ambassador to Serbia, H.E. Mubarak Saeed Burshid Al-Daher addressed those present while the Barili Choir, conducted by Katalin Tasic, sang the anthems of the UAE and Serbia.

Ambassadors of African countries

03 THE EXHIBITION DEC

"IRANIAN ART AND HANDICRAFTS"

The exhibition "Iranian Art and Handicrafts" was opened at the National Assembly House in Belgrade. The exhibition was opened by the President of the Friendship Group with Iran Jasmina Karanac

H.E. Hossein Molla Abdollahi, Iranian Ambassador

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www.diplomacyandcommerce.rs

H.E. Mubarak Aldhaheri, Ambassador of the UAE

and the Ambassador of Iran to Belgrade Husein Mola Abdolahi. On this occasion, 21 framed carpets of various dimensions are exhibited, which testify to the Persian art of Isfahan province, in Iran.

H.E. (U) Myo AYE, the Ambassador of Myanmar, H.E. Sheikh Mubarak Bin Fahad Al-Thani, the Ambassador of Qatar and H.E. Mohammed K. M. Nabhan, the Ambassador of Palestine

03 100th DEC

ANNIVERSARY OF THE UNION

H.E. Amr Aljowaily, the Egyptian Ambassador and H.E. Andrea Orizio, OSCE

04 JEWISH CENTER DEC

"HABAD SERBIA" CELEBRATED HANUKKAH

H.E. Oana Kristina Popa, the Romanian Ambassador

The Jewish Center "Habad Serbia" organized a celebration of the holiday of Hanukkah at the Hilton Hotel in Belgrade. The ceremony was attended by Ambassador of Israel in Belgrade Alon Fischer Kam, Minister of the Government of the Republic of Serbia Nenad Popovic, represent-

DEC

PRESENTS PERSON OF THE YEAR AWARDS

atives of the Jewish community and numerous guests, the statement said. Recalling the symbolism of the holiday of Hanukkah, the ambassador of Israel pointed out that it carries a universal message close to all people - about the victory of good over evil and light over darkness.

Nenad Popović, Serbian Minister of Innovation and Technological Development

H.E. Alon Fischer Kam

04 OSCE SERBIA

Belgrade's Hyatt Hotel. The Ambassador highlighted the strong and very good relations between Romania and Serbia and reminded of the traditional friendship and closeness of the two peoples, both Romanian and Serbian.

On the occasion of the national holiday, the Day of Romanian Unity, the embassy of this country in Serbia organized a formal reception.

The guests were welcomed by the Ambassador of Romania to Serbia, Oana Kristina Popa, at

The OSCE mission in Serbia presented its Person of the Year awards for 2018 at a ceremony. The award, which is given to people who represent the values the organization advocates, went to Aleksandar Alimpić, Governor of the Sremska Mitrovica penitentiary, Mileva Malesić, Director of TV Forum, Dejana Milijić

Andrea Orizio

Subić Deputy Director of the Institute for the Improvement of Education and to Dragomir Milojević, President of the Supreme Court of Cassation. Mission chief Andrea Orizio said at the ceremony at Belgrade’s Ethnography Museum that the OSCE focused on the changes to the constitution in its efforts to help reforms.

Andrea Orizio (OSCE) and Sem Fabrizi (EU Delegation) with wives

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47

PEOPLE & EVENTS

04 15 YEARS OF DEC

SUCCESSFUL WORK

The Slovenian Business Club today represents a significant and influential factor in business circles in Serbia and Slovenia. Slovenian and Serbian companies, as well as companies from other countries operating in these two markets, have recognized their

interest in cooperating with the SBC and are joining it.

The SBC members are socially responsible goal that are achieving their business goals while fully respecting the business environment, local community and the environment in which they operate.

Danijela Fišakov, President of the Slovenian Business Club

05 GALA DEC

NIGHT 2018 OF ISCC

The Italian-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, one of the most important business associations in Serbia, celebrated its 16th anniversary at the residence of H.E. Carlo Lo Cascio, Italian Ambassador to Serbia, in the presence of

Dr Giorgio Ambrogio Marchegiani , President of the Italian-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, and H.E. Carlo Lo Cascio

05 HEMOFARM: DEC

GREAT SUCCESS IN 2018

Brankica Janković, the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality

Hemofarm, a regional pharmaceutical leader, will finish this year on a successful note. The company has achieved again last year’s record, with 5.5 billion tablets produced, and its plants in Banja Luka, Šabac and Podgorica achieving record-breaking production volume.

"We are proud because, in the last 58 years, since opening

Ronald Seeliger

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H.E, the President of ISCC, Giorgio Marchegiani and more than 250 guests. This year’s winner of the traditional award “Giuseppe Maria Leonardi” is the company Fintel Energija AD, pioneer in wind energy in the Balkans for almost a decade.

a small plant in Vršac, Hemofarm, has grown into an international company operating globally - on three continents and in almost 40 countries of the world. We are also proud of the results achieved this year because we have confirmed numerous records”, said Ronald Seeliger, CEO of Hemofarm and Vice President of the Stada Group.

TRADITION

The Djoković Family’s Slava

Perfect blend of tradition and world glamour

In every Serbian household, Slava (family’s patron saint day) is the most important day of the year and the preparation for it lasts for days in order for Slava’s festive lunch to go seamlessly. This traditional event has a special, jovial note at the home of the Djoković family, and is obligatory as much as satisfactory for the family.

The world’s number one tennis player, Novak Djoković nurtures and respects tradition so it comes as no surprise that his patron saint day, Arandjelovdan is being prepared with due attention and love in his family. We were given an opportunity to experience this festive atmosphere on 21st November at the Novak restaurant where a gala dinner took part. We were greeted by a lady who the Djoković family entrusted with preparing culinary specialties for the special day.

The top Italian chef, Ljubica Komlenić is a culinary master.

This lady, who originates from the small town of Bač, has managed to forge for herself a career in Italy, one of the most demanding countries in the world, gastronomically speaking. She met the Djoković family at an international tennis tournament in Rome “I have been given a great honour since Novak is a fantastic person with a huge heart, as are his mother Dijana and wife Jelena. Novak’s mother accepted me as a family member and I did not want to let her down in the slightest. She is a very natural and humble person, despite being the mother of a world champion”, Ljubica says and adds that the head of the family, Srdjan Djoković thoroughly enjoys in the conversations about food and drink, but is also very mindful of every detail

and their guests’ satisfaction. ”The Djokovic family does everything from the heart and they try to honour every guest from the beginning to the end.”

In order for everything to be in perfect order for 150 guests, which is how many people attended the Djoković family’s Slava dinner, the preparations for it started three months prior.

“All the ingredients arrived from Italy. In order not to risk anything, all the groceries that were delivered were perfectly labeled. These are the top ingredients out there and we were mindful of every single detail and every single ingredient in order to cater to guests with food allergies. Even water was brought in especially from Italy,” Ljubica told us and underlined that they even paid special attention to

what kind of rice they used.

The director of the company that grows this rice is the first choice with all world famous chefs. Dino Massignani was also a guest of the Djoković family and told us what made his Riserva San Massimo rice so special.

“Our rice is top quality and healthy. We are the only company in Italy that produces rice with the help of Methane gas. There is not a slightest possibility that a chemical remains on the grain of our rice, or for the rice to be overcooked.”

It is a well-known fact that Novak is vegan, so we were curious to know if there were any meatbased dishes on the Slava menu.

The dinner comprised of six courses, with each chef being in charge of one course: - Franco Favaretto prepared cod

THE DJOKOVIC FAMILY DOES EVERYTHING FROM THE HEART AND THEY TRY TO HONOUR EVERY GUEST FROM THE BEGINNING TO THE END

from Venice in two ways; - Marinated radicchio and cooked winter sausages, with a serving of Merlot wine, were made

by Carlo Napo; - Massimo Fezzardi cooked rice with radicchio and cream made from Bagoss cheese; - Ravioli with duck and rosemary, duck liver and sauce were the specialty of Massimo Fezzardi; - Ljubica Komlenić prepared lamb shanks cooked for 48 hours at low temperature, sauce, puree and baby spinach; - Coconut and passion fruit, vanilla cream (gluten-free, vegan) were concocted by Nicolo Moschella.

As a one-of-a-kind specialty, there was also a serving of the traditional Italian ice-cream for which Ljubica claims is a true star among ice-creams.

Just like in sports, top notch gastronomy requires team work and only the team that is good and well-rehearsed accomplishes best results.

Ljubica said that she trusted immensely her colleague Massimo Fezzardi, who has a Michelin star, while Massimo added that he was truly honoured to be a part of such event.

"I am honoured and very emotional. In such a short period of time, I have seen for myself what a hospitable nation you are," he says.

Director of Worldchefs, Ragnar Fridriksson was also taken by the traditional hospitability of the Serbian people:”Serbian people are hospitable and this is especially true of the Djoković family who has a huge heart.”

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BUSINESS NEWS

NLB

PROFIT AFTER TAX EUR 158.3MLN

SUCCESS CONFERENCE

For the first time ever, Chivas Regal gathered marketing, business and IT experts in Serbia at a three-day conference titled ‘Success’. The conference is a reflection of a powerful universal message that Chivas transmits around the globe. Chivas believes that our personal blend is what makes us unique, and that only through cooperation with others and sharing success within a team we can achieve a real success. On the first conference day, with 50 selected representatives of the profession, one of the most renowned brand and business designer in Central and Eastern Europe, gave a lecture on the blend of creativity

and business. The remaining days were reserved for speakers like Dr Goran Pitić, a Professor of Economics and Associate MOC Professor at the Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness, Harvard Business School USA, who spoke about Digital Transformation

Eurobank

MANCHESTER UNITED FOOTBALL SCHOOL FOR CHILDREN IN 2019

Eurobank played host to the football legend, Wes Brown, and director of the Manchester United Football School, Michael Neary, under the auspices of the bank’s long-standing cooperation with FC Manchester United. As an exclusive partner of Manchester United football club, Eurobank has announced that it would organize Manchester United Football School for Children in 2019.

Eurobank has the great honour to bring the world-renowned and one of the most famous football schools to Serbia, so that

children here will also be given a unique opportunity to learn from the best.

Chairwoman of Eurobank’s Executive Board, Slavica Pavlović, said on the occasion: “Manchester United is one of the most popular sports brands that has long since surpassed the limits of a football club and has become a pioneer in exploring new business opportunities. Our collaboration with such a big brand has lasted since 2014 and has resulted in Eurobank issuing more than 27,000 Manchester United co-branded credit, debit and pre-paid payment cards that provide unique benefits to customers. I am particularly pleased that we are going to make it possible for children from Serbia to acquire football knowledge from the top professionals by attending this football school.”

In the first nine months of this year, NLB Group posted the profit after tax in the amount of EUR 158.3 million. All members of the NLB Group, i.e. banks operating in South East Europe, achieved good business results and had a 42% (76.2 million EUR) share in the Group’s total profit. NLB Bank Belgrade, a member of the NLB Group from Serbia, recorded a profit after tax of 6.4 million EUR in the first three quarters of this year. Branko Greganović, Chairman of the Executive Board of NLB Bank Belgrade, said: “We are extremely satisfied with the achieved results.

We continued to actively support the citizens and the economy and in the first nine months of this year, we have invested almost 220 million EUR in the realization of their personal and business plans, which is 35% more compared to the same period of 2017. We are particularly proud of the growing confidence of our clients, who are trusting us more and more with their finances, which is reflected in the 16% growth of total deposits in our bank compared to the first nine months of the previous year."

Wiener Privatklinik

INGUINAL HERNIA NEVER DISAPPEARS

CopyRight: sporn

Chivas

Nectar

CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF SUCCESSFUL OPERATIONS

In the twenty years of its operations, Nectar generated over 1 billion euro worth of gross added value (about 3% of Serbia’s GDP in 2017) with over 5,500 people in the Republic of Serbia being financially supported as a result of the company's activities. This was the main message from the presentation of the findings of the "Analysis of the Economic Impact of the Nectar Group in Serbia in the period 1998-2018" on the occasion of the celebration of the company’s 20th anniversary that was held at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia in the presence of state, business and media representatives, as well as business partners. In order to

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summarize the achievements from the past 20 years, Nectar hired the consulting firms Peterhof Consulting, led by Dragan Lončar, professor at the Faculty of Economics in Belgrade, and Alba Partners. Based on a specially developed methodology, the company was analyzed from the aspect of the gross added value created by its operations in the system together with the company’s suppliers and customers in Serbia.

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Inguinal hernia is a weakness of the abdominal wall located in the groin area. It´s a frequent condition which affects 27% of all men and is less frequent in woman (3%). Once it is diagnosed, inguinal hernia never disappears and can cause serious complications which may require emergency surgery. Hernia surgery is the only effective therapy in the treatment of groin hernias. The defect is repaired by open surgery either with or without implantation of a prosthetic mesh. With the introduction of minimally invasive surgery the laparoscopic treatment of inguinal hernias is becoming increasingly popular. Reduced postoperative pain and quick recovery are the main advantages of this treatment (TAPP). Nevertheless, it is technically demanding and should be carried out by a specialist in order to achieve excellent results. Professor Emanuel Sporn is one of Austria’s leading experts in minimally invasive surgery who has performed a number of these procedures on his national and international patients in the renowned Vienna Private Hospital (Wiener Privatklinik). His high level of expertise, attentive approach, and very low complication and recurrence rates are the main reasons why patients from all over the world are coming to the Vienna Private Hospital to be treated by Professor Sporn.

CBS International

RECORD YEAR FOR REAL ESTATE MARKET

The leading real estate consultancy CBS International, part of the Cushman & Wakefield Group, is ending the year 2018 with positive assessment of the real estate market trends in the upcoming period. According to their estimation, the current number of construction sites in Belgrade is significantly higher as compared to the past five years, and we can mark the current year as remarkably good as per the number of realized investments. By the end of the year 2020, Belgrade will, with the finalization of the office development schemes currently under construction, reach 1 million square meters of office space in its offer, whereas in the total number of transactions realized by the agencies in the first three quarters of 2018, CBS International accounted for 65% of lease and sales acquisitions. Equally so, Belgrade retail market will double its offer with the construction of three shopping malls in the next two years, which will enable the expansion of the present as well as arrival of new brands.

Generali Insurance Serbia

FIRST FAMILY FRIENDLY FINANCIAL ORGANIZATION

The first of the 90 financial organizations in Serbia with a certificate for family-run business Belgrade - Generali Insurance Serbia is the first financial organization in Serbia and the region that has received the Family Friendly Enterprise certificate. The certificate is awarded to companies that enable their employees to more easily align their private life obligations with their obligations at work.

The certificate was received by the Chairman of the Executive Board of Generali Osiguranje Dragan Filipović.

Dragan Filipović, President of the Executive Board and CEO of Generali Osiguranja Srbija, said on this occasion: "I

am proud of this certificate because it confirms that our employees are in the first place. Over 1,500 people work in our company. Their satisfaction is a prerequisite for the successful operation of the company and therefore we want to enable them to enjoy without stress the most important events in life."

New Mastercard Study

SERBS LOVE SUMMER

Vodavoda and Unicef

FOR EVERY CHILD BEST START

Thanks to the partnership between UNICEF and VODAVODA, the development center of Zvezdara Health Center is equipped with new furniture and didactic tools for working with children, and additional training for 104 pediatricians and healthcare associates from development counseling centers in Belgrade has been provided.

"The early childhood period is the most important development phase in every child's life, which is why we particularly thank the company VODAVODA for dedicated investment in early development and a significant contribution in this field," said Regina De Dominicis, UNICEF Director. "Together with UNICEF, we want to contribute to the well-being of children in order to get the necessary services in the first days of their lives in order to realize their potential and lead a healthy and productive life. Our mission is to work on raising the awareness of every individual about the importance of investing in children from the earliest age, because we are the best basis for a healthy and successful nation in the future, "says VODAVODA's creator Vojin Djordjević.

A typical Serb loves summer from winter vacation, he will rather talk on the phone than send messages to friends, he will rather spend New Year and Christmas at home with his family than to travel during holidays and more often use Cyrillic than Latin script. These are the

results of today's research entitled "Start putting what you care about first", which Mastercard conducted in November 2018 to better understand the preferences and problems that Serbs face in their everyday lives, and which are the areas in their local community that need to be improved. The study showed that honesty is the highest virtue for Serbs with 39% of respondents who pointed out this value. After sincerity follow friendship (18%), independence (10%), reliability (9%), and dedication (7%).

Often, we talk about Serbia as a sporting country thanks to numerous titles won both in individual and team sports, so it is not surprising that sport is the biggest passion for 24% of Serbs.

Skyline

REAL ESTATE CONSTRUCTION IN ACCORDANCE WITH INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS

When it comes to selecting a property for life or work, the exterior and interior design is certainly the first thing that draws your attention.

However, technical characteristics shouldn't be overlooked either. Control, security, selection of material and compliance with legal regulations are elements that every project should address prior to launching construction.

Although the selection of construction materials will not enhance the aesthetic appeal of your interior, it will undoubtedly contribute to improving the safety and quality of the building. Construction materials are specific - their performance and properties are only evident when they are fully applied. As such, it is desirable to check whether your selected property satisfies certain standards pertaining to the materials and structural elements to be used during construction.

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RENAISSANCE MAN

The Many Talents of Pieter Bruegel the Elder The 16th-century Flemish master was much more than a painter of busy peasant pictures

THE MUSIC is playing and the ale flowing freely as guests throng into a barn. Two cooks bring soup to a dining table crowded with men, women, dogs and children. It is a wedding, but the bride’s calm expression gives little away. It is hard to discern the bridegroom.

“Peasant Wedding” (1567)

by Pieter Bruegel the Elder is a milestone in Western art, for it is the first everyday scene depicted in monumental form. As the stuff of Christmas cards and jigsaws, it is among the world’s best-known paintings, much like his “Hunters in the Snow” (1565). These works, and his Wimmelbilder—“busy pictures” such as “Children’s Games” (1560), which shows more than 200 little figures at play—earned him the nickname “Peasant Bruegel”. That is only part of the picture, as a magnificent new exhibition of around half Bruegel’s extant works at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, commemorating the 450th anniversary of his death, reveals.

Bruegel was the most important Flemish painter of the 16th century.

He was a key player in the northern Renaissance, where the art was quirkier and more secular but no less pathbreaking than in the better-known south. The exhibition cleverly connects Bruegel with his southern counterparts by highlighting the influence of Venetian painters such as Titian. Followers at first, artists in the Low Countries re-embraced classical ideas but kept them on a human scale.

The first paintings in the show are from his “Seasons” cycle in 1565. These works are based on medieval depictions of peasants going about their daily tasks, but Bruegel focused on landscape to great effect. The frozen mountains and glowering skies of “The Gloomy Day” convey the miseries of a still-lingering winter;

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off in the distance, a boat sinks in rough seas. In contrast, the serene, apple-green valley of “The Haymaking” conjures the productive pleasures of early summer.

Elsewhere, as his figures thread their way along winding mountain paths or across open spaces, Bruegel uses the landscape to play with perspective. Human beings are often dwarfed by nature. The protagonist of a painting’s title—

HIS WORK WAS MUCH, MUCH MORE THAN A CHRISTMAS-CARD VISION OF JOLLY PEASANT LIFE most notably “Christ Carrying the Cross” (1564)—will frequently be hard to spot. Bruegel’s triumph was to present a wealth of detail in a dramatic, coherent whole.

A dark thread runs through Bruegel’s work, and the politics of the time must go some way to explaining it. Flanders was under Habsburg rule throughout the artist’s lifetime,

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with power passing to the Spanish branch of the dynasty in 1556 and the Duke of Alba (the “Iron Duke”) initiating a reign of terror in 1567.

Whether he was referring to these events in the “The Massacre of the Innocents” is a matter of debate among scholars, partly because the work is undated. The version on show in Vienna is a copy, one that bears witness to the fact the Bruegel had graphically depicted soldiers killing children. The artwork as it exists today has no such brutal details since Rudolf II, the Holy Roman Emperor who owned it, ordered that they be painted over.

Dark, but in a different way, are Bruegel’s monster-filled, nightmarish scenes, where he builds on the hallucinatory work of Hieronymus Bosch. In the engraving “Big Fish Eat Little Fish” (1557), a man takes a huge knife to the belly of a fish.

Out tumble many small fish, which in turn have even smaller ones in their mouths. It is a grim illustration of how society’s “small fry” will always be chewed up by the rich and powerful.

In a league of its own, however, is “The Triumph of Death” (after 1562). Here a terrified crowd flees

a flaming “hell wagon”—a feature of Flemish festive processions— only to find themselves in a death trap. Time runs out for a king on an hourglass; a woman is trampled by a horse pulling a skull-filled cart. Bruegel holds the viewer spellbound before an apocalyptic panorama in which an army of skeletons makes sure no one escapes. As the exhibition puts it: “No solace, no redemption, no sign of God.” Art does not come much bleaker than this.

If the earthy, wry “Peasant Bruegel” is well known, the impressive show in Vienna reveals an artist pushing the bounds of storytelling in landscape painting. Though few facts about him are known, you sense in Bruegel’s art a deeply humanist response to his troubled times. His work was much, much more than a Christmas-card vision of jolly peasant life.

“Pieter Bruegel: Once in a Lifetime” is on display at Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna until January 13th.

From The Economist, published under licence. The original article, in English, can be found on www.economist.com

CULTURE

Text: ŽIKICA MILOŠEVIĆ

Neither a Saint, Nor a Hypocrite Sometimes I want to remember myself BOJANA VUNTURIŠEVIĆ Pop-rock singer/songwriter

Bojana Vunturišević is a Serbian singer-songwriter. She was previously the lead singer of the Belgrade-based rock band Svi Na Pod!. In 2017, she successfully launched her solo career by releasing the debut album Daljine.

Bojana profiled herself within the electro-pop genre, and her single “Kese Etikete” (“Plastic Bag Labels”) has almost instantaneously obtained a cult status, reflecting the growing sense of alienation among the young audience, which resonates with the global trends. Her sharp lyrics and catchy tunes are matched by her crystal clear vocals, thus making her music irresistible.

moment when I decided to „do it myself“. Maybe I don't remember it because the decision to leave the band was not mine to make. Of course, I am not alone today. I have more collaborators now than I had while singing in that six-member band, four years ago. I am planning to include more new, young collaborators into my circle.

After spending 10 years in Svi Na Pod!, a band that emerged during the fresh new Belgrade wave at the end of the first decade of the 21st century, and after being a guest vocal in E-Play's song „Beautiful Day“ („Divan Dan“), which you are known for, you decided to go solo. Your album „Distances“ („Daljine“) was quite noticed. How did this evolution come about and when did you decide to „do it yourself“?

Everybody seems to be humming the song „Plastic Bag Labels“ and those who don't are amused by its entertaining and touching lyrics. How can we describe the loneliness and existential angst in this sarcastic time of social media?

— To be more precise, I spent five years in Svi Na Pod!, from 2009 to 2014, when the band released its second and last album „Youth“ („Mladost“). Since the release of that album to date, it seems that I have lived three lives so I really don't remember the particular

BALANCE IN LIFE IS IMPORTANT. YOU CAN BE LIKE THIS OR LIKE THAT, BLACK, WHITE OR GREY

— This question is too hard for me to answer at this moment. I can only say that I am more prone to becoming like the character from the song „Plastic Bag Labels“. I am not a saint, but I am not a hypocrite either. Yes, I also buy a rubber beach in the middle of winter, because, in those kinds of moments, I want to remember who I am. But that happens occasionally! Balance in life is important. You can be like this or like that, black, white or grey.

How do your songs, music and lyrics come about?

— It's not a default process and the next one is different from the previous one. Sometimes everything goes smoothly, and sometimes I suffer so much to come up with lyrics or music. Sometimes I am completely alone in this process, and sometimes I team up. Sometimes I love working with my team, and sometimes I feel like scratching their eyes out. Anyhow, there is always a lot of life in the process, everything is very active and it doesn't fit any mould.

You are somehow succeeding in being a girl, a 30+ mature woman, a mother, bitter yet entertaining at the same time. How do you manage all that?

— I think it's down to good genes.

The other day, the kiosk vendor barely let me buy a cigarette pack because I did not have my ID with me. I got a compliment that I

looked like a 15-year-old. Yes, this is due to good genes, but also to my deep need to be and work with children which keeps alive the child in me. I am the only mum who goes down the slide with her child at a playhouse. I don't want to be a „finger wagging“ person. I think that we can learn more from children than they can do from us.

It seems to me that, yet again, just like in the 1980s, women have become super strong in rock and roll, pop and songwriting?

— Women have always been strong – in the 1960s, 70s, 80s to this very day. In the 1960s, we had great all female vocal ensembles.

In the 1970s, Janis Joplin and Grace Jones emerged. In the 1980s, it was Annie Lennox. But, yes, women are especially powerful in music industry today. We do have strong women, who are often aggressive to a certain degree. I prefer to be strong without aggression.

I AM RIDING THE WAVE CALLED LIFE You have given birth to a child and your first album.

You have conquered all stages and you are liked by girls, who identify with you, and men, believe it or not. What is next for you?

— I never plan. I am riding the wave called life. I accept what is being given to me or taken away from me.

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CORPORATE

The Artist is Present In Langouste, Guillame Iskadar, Michelin star chef offers a modern and personal vision of French cuisine, mix of creativity based on the high quality of products cooked in perfect technique, matched with equally fine wine selection and precise service. In short, the real fine dining experience

GUILLAME ISKADAR Chef-Langouste, Michelin star chef

Guillame Iskadar, chef-Langouste is the only chef in Belgrade and probably in Serbia with a Mischlen star. „Does the lack of competition make your life as a chef easier or not?“ – we

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asked him. And this is what he says: „My first competitor is me and I always work to don’t disappointed myself“.

We took a chance to ask our interlocutor, an expert in fine dining to how does he defines that term.

“Fine dining experience is giving feeling of emotion in creativity by high quality product cook in perfect technique , wine selection and

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precise service. To be a fine dining restaurant chef have to lead his vision, his philosophy and knowledge to the team but chef have to never forget his prime mission to feed his customer !“, says Iskadar.

What Langouste fine dining sets apart from the rest of crowd?

— We offer two different menu, one is based on vegetable and local meat and other on fish from

Adriatic sea and Italian inspiration in a modern and personal vision of French cuisine, but modern doesn’t t mean molecular it’s mean following season with small provider. It’s important to put a face behind each product to know the provider because each product have his own history and his own territory same like a wine

Your moto is “I want my cus-

tomers to find on their plate the farm products of my grandparents' time”. How that translates into your choice of meals in Langouste?

— In Langouste we organize concept to be flexible and find the best product we have, different family of meat, fish, Italian inspiration vegetable, local fruit …and we go in 3 different market every day to find the best goods, in the mine time some of our suppliers pick for us wild herbs, berry and mushrooms so we don’t have stress in kitchen and when we meet a beautiful product we can create something in live during service.

I think lot of cooker looks for guaranty and security by taking goods in big market where the quality is regular but not crazy but in langouste, we decide to work with small fisherman and other providers to make “haute couture”

I DISCOVER LANGOUSTE 3 YEARS AGO AS A GUEST AND I DIRECTLY FALL IN LOVE WITH THIS PLACE. AFTER I MET ZORAN, THE OWNER, WHO IS AMAZING GUY, I ABSOLUTELY DECIDE TO MAKE SERIOUS RESTAURANT Your restaurant Garance in Paris is tightly connected to the Garance farm in Limoges. Were you able to find providers in Belgrade that suit your taste?

— I’m very satisfied and that also motivate my decision to come here but of course it request a lot of time to create good relations with provider. Serbia is rich by his food culture and his historical influence in all part of country offer us diversity of goods of excellent quality

How did you decide to accept a gig in Belgrade? Would it be a short or a long term relation?

— I discover Langouste 3 years ago as guest and I directly fall in love with this place. After I met Zoran, the owner, who is amazing guy, I absolutely decide to make serious restaurant. He give me support and confidence for everything and I consider him like more than a friend. It take time to make real fine dining in Belgrade and my long term goals are connected with this restaurant.

In one of the reviews of your Paris restaurant it is said that it offers a “talent in each plate”.

What the guests can expect in Langouste?

— We work a lot, more than 12 hour by day, 6 days a week but we organize everyday testing on different product but of course we have some CLASSIC like this combination of rib eye and foie gras or focaccia of squid and white truffle but in all our decision we try to go in certain purity of product

The famous chef Sebastien Bras said earlier this year that he wants to be "liberated" from the stress of keeping Michelin stars.

How are you dealing with that challenge?

— Last August I had one of the best dinner ever in Sebastien Bras table.

Michelin star is nowadays the biggest reward for chefs around the world but he is enough mature to take the decision if he fell Michelin stars like pressure and it’s better for him to remove if he continue to be so brilliant chef.

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INTERVIEW

Text: DUŠAN VASIĆ

One Love, Ageless and Evergreen I remained enchanted by Mexican culture and art for all times. My entire artistic endeavour and creative work has been driven by the need to simultaneously promote Mexican culture in Serbia and our culture in Mexico

LEPOSAVA SIBINOVIĆ MILOŠEVIĆ Painter and sculptor

Ms. Leposava Sibinović Milošević, a painter and sculptor from Belgrade, has recently been awarded the highest Mexican acknowledgment for foreigners, the Medal of the Aztec Eagle, for her contribution to connection between and promotion of the culture and art of the two countries.

At the official ceremony held at the Ambassador’s residence, Ms. Milosevic was assigned the Medal by the Ambassador of Mexico to Serbia, H.E. Mr. Marco Antonio Garcia Blanco. This was the reason for our visit to Ms. Milosevic. We spoke with the artist in her apartment in the settlement of Rakovica, on the edge of Belgrade. The spacious living room, which looks over the Strazevica hill, notorious for the

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ceaseless NATO bombardment of 1999, is full of sculptures, paintings, books, handicrafts and other artisanal objects. Most are devoted to Mexico.

You and Mexico, how did this connection come about?

— Just three years after my graduation, back in 1977, I received a modest scholarship from our government for a one-year Master program. Naturally, my parents helped me financially and I also sold several sculptures. Without that, I would not have lasted even three months. I started to learn Spanish immediately, and at the same time I started to attend the National Academy "San Carlos". I

was left to myself. I worked tirelessly, sculpting and painting and I began to have exhibitions. I obtained my Master’s degree from the sculpture department. The doors of many galleries opened for me, and what I shaped and painted found its buyers very quickly. With new pieces of work and newly acquired knowledge, feeding on the Hispanic culture and style, I made new friends, went to numerous cities, held lectures, visited the most important cultural events, took part in them and became more and more enthralled by Mexico, its people and culture.

What were the dominant motives at the beginning of your

IT IS A SPECIAL HONOR FOR ME THAT MANY WHO COME FROM MEXICO, INSTEAD OF MENTIONING THE EVENT OR THE CITY THEY COME TO, SIMPLY SAY - LET'S GO TO LEPA

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work in Mexico?

— There were no preconceived topics. I found inspiration in the nature which had surrounded me there - cactus, agave, palm trees...

Although those are often used motives, I have made my breakthrough exactly with them. The secret was that I treated them in a new manner, conveyed them differently and observed the nature with a different ’’pair of eyes’’. That has carried me forward and enabled me to advance quickly.

When did you return and why?

— I have returned after five and a half years, more precisely- in 1982. It was in one moment that I realised I had achieved everything I had wanted on the artistic plane.

At the same time, I felt the need to create a home, to have a family. Soon I got married and got kids. Nonetheless, I continued to socialize with Mexican artists. I remained enchanted by Mexican

culture and art for all times.

art seem equally widespread. One is ease, and the other inventiveness. First of all, I think of ease in terms of shaping ordinary objects, which serve for daily use, but may also serve for spiritual or religious purposes. The ease also includes the ability to cope with demanding materials with scarce resources and to create sophisticated forms, admired by the modern man, who has all the available technologies at his disposal.

How did this linkage and promotion of cultures unfold?

— Up to now, I have organised more than fifty cultural projects which have included joint performances of our and Mexican artists, foremost paintors and sculptors...

Not only in one or the other country, but also in the third countries.

There were also numerous joint workshops, painting colonies, promotions of books and films, and similar. Each project has a different theme or is related to a particular painting technique, or sculptural expression. When our author's exhibition arrives in Mexico, then I make sure that it goes around as many cities as possible, to the extent that the funds allow.

And when I organise an exhibition of Mexican artistic work in Serbia, then paintings and sculptures are also presented in Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. This year we will have such an appearance in Budapest and next year in Sofia, which will be the European Capital of Culture 2019. At the same time, we will have an exhibition "Toys and Robots in the Books of Artists" at the Museum of Old Toys (the only one of its kind in the world) in Mexico City, where works of 80 authors from all over the world will be presented. That forms part of a unique and large project of artistic expression on parchment.

Why parchment?

— Parchment is a type of material derived from specially treated natural lamb skin, which began to be used in the Old Ages, when Egypt placed a ban on the export of paper. Because of its fullness and durability (even though water and high temperatures can do it harm), parchment served for ceremonial recording and recording of that which was worth remembering.

The Miroslav's Gospel, the most

Will any of the young artists from Serbia follow in your footsteps?

UP TO NOW, I HAVE ORGANISED MORE THAN FIFTY CULTURAL PROJECTS WHICH HAVE INCLUDED JOINT PERFORMANCES OF OUR AND MEXICAN ARTISTS, NOT ONLY IN ONE OR THE OTHER COUNTRY, BUT ALSO IN THE THIRD COUNTRIES significant Cyrillic monument of Serbian-Slovene literacy from the 12th century, was written on parchment. Somewhere as early as 2000, we launched many international painting project on parchment under the general name the "Parchment Serbia". So far, we have organized around 60 exhibitions with parchment works, this book-accordion, with six sheets, usually 20 x 20 centimeters in size.

The culture of the two countries is very different. Is there a similarity?

— Both nations and their artists have an affinity toward color and natural forms. Hence, in both of the folk and artistic traditions, strong and various colors are dom-

inant. In addition to this, Serbia has cultivated a painting tradition connected to monasteries in the past, while the culture of Mexico is characterized by a mixture of Indian past, colonial conquest and later post-colonial development.

What is specific about the creation of Mexican artists?

— Mexico is a vast land, with territory covering various zones - tropical, coastal, vulcanic, mountainous, etc., and it is one of the oldest civilizations, the history of which contains deposits of numerous influences. In that diversity, which brings about a variety of habits and traits, artistic expression, too, has many specificities. Nonetheless, two traits of creators in the field of

— Several talented young men and girls have already gone to Mexico. Not with a scholarship, but in search of their lucky star.

Two have already reached a professor’s title at various art faculties.

One is a painter and one a sculptor. Their works are already wellknown and have entered many galleries. I hope that they will, with their fresh emotions, contribute to further artistic cooperation and interweaving of the cultures of the two countries.

And your family, is it also leaning toward Mexico?

— My daughter Maria has a lead there. She graduated from Graphic Arts at the Faculty of Applied Arts, and now she is preparing her PhD in Multimedia Arts at the University of Arts in Belgrade. She has already participated in exhibitions in Mexico and Serbia with a number of works. My son Milos, who graduated from the same faculty as his sister, after having obtained his specialisation in Paris, dedicated himself to graphic design, but has also exhibited several times within the Mexican-Serbian project. My husband Miroslav is a lawyer and does not engage in art.

However, for years now, he has been hosting artists from Mexico together with me.

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REPORTAGE

Text: ROBERT ČOBAN

Media biography:

EMĪLIJA BENJAMIŅA (1881-1941)

Dramatic Life and Foretold Death of Latvian “Press Queen” Emīlija Benjamiņa – from a newspaper publisher in small Latvia to one of the wealthiest women in Europe between two world wars and what can we learn from the tumultuous history of the southern Baltic towns Not far away from the Latvian capital of Riga, I came across a quite big, modern-style villa, tucked away in the greenery, with a lavish metal gate decorated in floral motives, facing the sandy beach of Jurmala, a royal resort that was enjoyed by Communist leaders too.

After a quick online search and a conversation with my Latvian colleagues, I started to discover pages of the villa’s exciting history and her owner who, between the two world wars, was the wealthiest woman in Latvia and one of the wealthiest women in Europe.

Emīlija Benjamiņa was the middle of three sisters in the family of Andris and Ede Simsons. Unlike her sisters, who were artists, Emīlija was drawn to media world since very young age. At the age of 17, she was already working in advertising sales and as a theatre critic for the German-language newspaper Rigaer Tagesbatt, which at that time, was published by the renowned Jewish family, Blankenstein. Back then, Latvia was a part of the Russian Empire with a large share of the Russians, Germans and Jews in the general population.

A COMPLIMENT FROM HEARST

Emīlija married young and her first marriage was far from a fairy tale – her husband was an alcohol-

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ic and physically abusive towards her. Soon after she left him, she met a man by the name Anton Benjamiņš, a fellow journalist who was 21 years her senior, married with three children. In time, the couple started managing the Rigaer Tagesbatt – she was engaged more in the business side of it, and he was the editor.

In 1911, they decided to start living together, Emīlija was finally granted a divorce and soon after, the pair launched the first newspaper in the Latvian language called Jaunākās Ziņas I (in translation “The Latest News”). They hired journalists who wrote solely in Latvian and up until then, worked only for the Russian and German

GLORIOUS CAREER AND CRUEL DEATH: Emīlija Benjamiņa

printing machinery from Germany. However, the war broke out, the invoice was not paid and the company that delivered the machinery went bankrupt and eventually went under. During the revolution, the Bolsheviks used Emīlija and Anton’s print shop for a brief period of time to print their propaganda fliers and when they left, there were tonnes of unused paper left behind them which enabled Emīlija and Anton to resume their printing business soon after the war.

In 1922, Anton was also finally granted a divorce which meant that the pair could marry now.

They also launched a first-ever magazine in the Latvian language

ON HER VISIT TO PARIS, IN THE 1930S, EMĪLIJA MET WILLIAM RANDOLPH HEARST, THE FAMOUS AMERICAN PRESS MAGNATE WHO WILL LATER SERVE AS INSPIRATION TO ORSON WELLES AND HIS CULT CLASSIC “CITIZEN KANE” language newspapers. The business was booming and the newspaper continued coming out even during “The Great War” when it became renowned for publishing advertisements, free of charge, placed by refugees who were looking for their lost family members.

Just before the war, Emīlija and Anton ordered state-of-the-art

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called Atpūta (in translation “Enjoyment”). In 1928, they moved into a big house, in the centre of Riga, which was aptly named the Fabu Palace, and became owners of several pieces of real estate in the town and on the Baltic coastline.

On her visit to Paris, in the 1930s, Emīlija met William Randolph Hearst, the famous Amer-

ican press magnate who will later serve as inspiration to Orson Welles and his cult classic “Citizen Kane”. Hearst gave several compliments to Emīlija and added that he would love to have a share of the press market in his own country as big as Emīlija’s.

THE FIRST LADY OF LATVIA

Since she did not have children from either marriage, Emīlija made an agreement with her younger sister to adopt her son Georg, and change his name to Juris Benjamiņš.

As things usually happen, success in business and wealth brought a high position in the society. The lavish parties that Emīlija hosted were frequented by crème-de-la-crème of Latvia. Since the then president of Latvia, Kārlis Ulmanis was still a bachelor at the time, Emīlija was tantamount to “The First Lady of Latvia” in a way.

One of the guests at her famous parties was also the globally renowned fortune teller Eugen Finks. Upon studying her palm, Finks exclaimed – “You will die of hunger on wooden boards!” Of course, considering that we are talking about the person who was back then the richest woman in Latvia, many saw this prophecy as a “tasteless joke of a charlatan”.

In 1938, Emīlija and Anton started building a huge mansion in Jur-

mala, designed by the architect Lev Vitlin. Unfortunately, Anton never got to live there because he died on 14th June, 1939 leaving Emīlija 51% of his assets (worth, according to some estimates, 50 million Swiss Francs in gold) in his will which was contested in court by his children from his first marriage.

A tragic set of historical circumstances overshadowed the final ruling of the court. Following the Ribbentrop-Molotov pact, formed on 24th August, 1939, Latvia and other Baltic states were put under the control of the Soviet Union. In June 1940, the Red Army troops marched into Riga and all of Emīlija's property was confiscated. The last issue of Jaunākās Ziņas was published on 9th August, 1940.

Emīlija did manage to vacate some of the family treasure, like Tsar Nicholas II of Russia’s gold set of plates which she bought in the 1920s from Prince Felix Yusupov, the man who killed Rasputin. She

smuggled the family belongings through the corridor that the Nazis had previously used for the evacuation of the German nationals and renowned Latvian citizens when the Soviets took over the town.

The collection was later stolen in Vienna, never to be found again.

Emīlija remained hopeful that she would keep her business and real estate but a couple of weeks later, it was too late for everything.

The Swedish ambassador to Lativia offered Emīlija a fictitious marriage so she could be given a diplomatic immunity and leave Riga. However, she refused since this offer did not include her adopted son whom she did not want to leave behind.

“ON WOODEN BOARDS”

As it often happens in life, Emīlija’s destiny was sealed by a man who used to work for, was a regular guest at her parties and was her close friend – Vilis Lācis, the

new Interior Minister of the Socialist Latvia. On 17th June, the Soviet police showed up at the entrance of her building with a list of people to be arrested. Emīlija was allowed to bring just one suitcase with her.

Juris was also on the list, but the police failed to find him.

The former wealthiest woman in Latvia died on 23rd September, 1941, in the Soviet work camp Solikamsk, a week after she turned 60. Her frozen and emaciated body was found on the wooden floor in one of the camp’s barracks.

For the next 50 years, Emīlija and Anton’s mansion in Jurmala served as a holiday property for many high-ranking Communist officials in the Soviet Union. In 1995, it was returned to its rightful owners through restitution.

The entire south Baltic coast,

AS IT OFTEN HAPPENS IN LIFE, EMĪLIJA’S DESTINY WAS SEALED BY A MAN WHO USED TO WORK FOR, WAS A REGULAR GUEST AT HER PARTIES AND WAS HER CLOSE FRIEND – VILIS LĀCIS, THE NEW INTERIOR MINISTER OF THE SOCIALIST LATVIA GULAG: Image from the Solikamsk work camp

GEM OF MODERNIST ARCHITECTURE: Emīlija and Anton’s mansion in Jurmala

from Tallinn in the north to Gdansk in the south, was the epicenter of dramatic events throughout the 20th century - entire towns were razed to the ground by bombs (like Königsberg, i.e. today’s Kaliningrad in Russia), the Holocaust almost wiped out the entire Jewish population of Poland and Latvia, the territories exchanged hands based on secret agreements between big powers, the riches disappeared in confiscations or wars, workers’ uprisings that changed the course of history like the one in Gdansk in 1980 and such.

I visited a restored synagogue in Kaunas, the former capital of Lithuania, which has been declared the 2022 European Capital of Culture.

Up until 1941, there were 40 synagogues and over 100 Jewish municipalities here, and Jews made up 25% of the population. As a result of Nazi’s atrocities, with a strong support from the local Lithuanian fascists, almost all Jews here ended up in gas chambers of Auschwitz.

In Riga, the capital city of Latvia, I spent hours visiting the blocks of buildings built in the early 20th century Secession style which are a witness to the great wealth and progress of the Baltic ports at the time.

In Kaliningrad, the former capital of East Prussia, and the town that is the birth- and death place of Immanuel Kant, I remembered the story about the biggest maritime catastrophe in the history of human kind – the sinking of the MV Wilhelm Gustloff which, in 1945, carried 10,600 German civilians (including 5,000 children), escaping the Red Army from East Prussia. Two torpedoes fired from the Russian submarine sank the overcrowded ship and 9,600 passengers died. To this day, this is considered the biggest maritime tragedy ever. Even Gunter Grass dedicated his novel “Crabwalk” to this horrendous event.

Today, this border region between the NATO countries and Russia, populated by Catholics, Protestants and the Orthodox Christians, is one of the most prosperous in Europe. Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are all EU members with high growth rates and the respectable IT industry. Although the Germans are long gone from the Kaliningrad area, this also remains one of the most progressive and best regulated parts of Russia. The New Baltic proves that, regardless of how tumultuous a region’s history could be, it should be used only for tourist purposes and not for opening of old wounds.

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CORPORATE

Your Body is the Temple for Your Soul Everything that helps us maintain and improve our health is going to manifest well aesthetically, namely in our appearance and beauty Dr VLADIMIR ARSENIJEVIĆ General and Emergency Surgery Specialist, the Emergency Surgery Clinic of the Emergency Room of the Clinical Centre of Serbia

Dr Vladimir Arsenijević is a member of the Serbian Medical Association and the International Association of Surgeons, Gastroenterologist and Oncologist (IASGO). He has also participated in a number of domestic and international anti-age medical conferences. We are talking to Dr Arsenijević about aesthetic medicine and the application of new products and devices.

How challenging was for you to engage in one branch of aesthetic medicine?

— Haughtiness and stupidity are widespread in today’s world.

Everyone, in their respective professions, needs to constantly improve, create new visions and new views on life, as well as use their talents to maximize general and personal satisfaction. The surgery I deal with is challenging, and although being also comprehensive and demanding, it is no less challenging than other branch of medicine. If you are an expert in your line of work, you will see challenges everywhere. I have seen them in aesthetic medicine.

In the last few years, in aesthetic medicine, treatments using natural materials have grown in popularity. What is your view of this change?

— It's not a change but rather aesthetic medicine finally returning to its rightful path. You are referring to treatments that are actually medical procedures. By using our own resources, we restore the areas of the body where these resources have disappeared, or accelerate them where they have slowed down. It is important that these procedures are performed

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by a doctor, in order to achieve the desired effect and provide adequate benefits for the patient’s money, as well as because of the possible complications when such interventions are performed by unskilled and medically unqualified persons.

What is soft surgery and what is it recommended for?

— Soft or bloodless surgery involves a series of procedures using modern technology in order to postpone the use of classical surgery, or even carry out certain interventions that were undoable without surgery until recently (without anesthesia, postoperative recovery, etc.).

How do you administer the PRP therapy (or the so-called “vampire therapy”) and on which parts of the body do you use it?

— It’s funny how a negative promotion by Instagram stars turned into a positive trend. In PRP, we use blood plasma, enriched with patient’s own thrombocytes, their own growth factors and other components essential in the rejuvenation of the skin and subcuta-

popular, but as more people are becoming familiar with the essence of aesthetic medicine, the number of popular treatments has been growing. Anti-age treatments are no longer reserved only for celebrities and wealthy people. They are accessible to almost everyone today; especially if they are done by doctors who put ethics, morality and expertise ahead of money.

I have to admit that lately more and more of my patients are men who take care of their physical appearance, regularly train, eat a healthy diet, and accordingly want their face to look as good as their body. The most popular treatments are those that do not alter facial contours but lead to skin rejuvenation and regeneration.

The Serbian Ministry of Health has formed a working group that controls the suitability of patients for aesthetic treatments, administration of hyaluronic fillers etc.

What do you think of that?

If you notice that a patient does not need a specific treatment, or that a patient is overdoing it with aesthetic treatments, do you

How is aesthetic and anti-age medicine going to develop in the next 10 years?

IOANNA = NEW VISION AND NEW IDEAS DAIL. SOFT ANTI AGE WILL BE OUR PRIORITY neous tissue with all their structures. I am deliberately underlining this to illustrate what a good, natural and logical treatment this is. The PRP treatment is used in many branches of medicine; from orthopedics to aesthetic medicine. For aesthetical purposes, it is recommended for patients over 30 years of age. The parts of the body where we usually apply PRP are the face, the neck, the cleavage, the hands and the hair.

What are the most popular anti-age treatments?

— Fillers are certainly the most

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advise them against a certain treatment or an intervention?

— I would really like you to ask my patients this question. I do hope that some of them will contact you after this interview is published and share their experiences. I am very adamant – we contour, and not make caricatures out of people.

It is a great pleasure to see how Dr Ioanna approaches this topic and how much attention, subtlety and expertise he uses in trying to break these illusions that patients have and steer them toward the right path that will give the most beautiful result.

— Do you know that in Great Britain this segment is totally unregulated? Gardeners and veterinarians can administer fillers there. Dr Ionna has lunched the initiative you have mentioned. However, I am very glad to see that the Ministry has engaged experts to participate in the working group, both from aesthetic medicine and all other branches. This is one more proof that the Ministry is very vigilant about everything than is harmful to our health. I would like to congratulate and thank them.

— I believe that this branch of medicine will grow immensely.

The average lifespan is now longer and aesthetic medicine is accessible to anyone who wants to and does take care of their health.

Actually, anti-age is turning into a lifestyle. If we add to that technology and new devices, we have a renaissance at our hands.

Could you tell us about the innovations at the IOANNA Clinic?

— When you are working with Ioanna, you are opening the door to the magical space of anti-age treatments for body and face.

The sources for the Clinic’s holistic approach to patients are inexhaustible, which results in new treatments like mesotherapy cocktails for face and body, new technologies like Plexr and Vibrans, etc.

CORPORATE

Fashion Christmas Tree exhibition at the Mercator Centre Belgrade In cooperation with Serbia Fashion Week and Color Media Communications, the Mercator Centre Belgrade has staged the Fashion Christmas Tree exhibition this year

Twenty Christmas trees, decorated specially for this occasion by visitors of the Mercator Centre in Belgrade, will be exhibited from December 1st to January 15th next year.

Also, famous local and international fashion designers personally decorated the Christmas trees on display, thus demonstrating that the New Year’s holidays are a period for generous donations, and that Christmas trees can be decorated in various creative and decorative ways with different materials, all of which makes this exhibition quite unique.

All exhibited Christmas trees are for sale, while the fashion designers and exhibition organizers will personally hand over the col-

lected money to institutions and individuals in need of assistance.

The designers, whose Christmas trees will be exhibited this year at the Mercator Centre in Belgrade, are: Nataša Župac, Nemanja Pantelić, Djordje Bukvić, Marina Ilić-Marinia, MB Contur brand

by Mira and Božica, Maja Krsmanović, Dušica Županjac-PRIK, Bogdan Mrša, Disciplina, Danijela Božić, Jovana Zivkovic-SPES LINE, Suzana Perić, Kadet, Amela Radan (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Marios Karavasilis (Greece), Sanja Veličković (Slovenia), William Arlotti (France), Mirna Posavčević (Croatia), Carmichael A. Byfield (The Netherlands), Ritienne Zammit (Malta) and Romero Bryan (the United Kingdom).

Celebrate the holidays in style!

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KOLARAC

Concert hall

CALENDAR & NEWS

BELGRADE PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

14

DEC

20:00

ASCENSION 2

CONCERT PROGRAMME December 2018

Grand Hall of the Kolarac Foundation

Conductor: Cristian Mandeal Soloist: David Fray, piano

21

DEC

20:00

FREEDOM 3

Grand Hall of the Kolarac Foundation

Conductor: Daniel Raiskin Soloist: Alexander Buzlov, violoncello

30

DEC

20:00

CLOSING CONCERT:

HILCADEMY 3

Conductor: Uroš Lajovic Solista: Boris Brezovac, viola Aleksandar Latković, cello

Grand Hall of the Kolarac Foundation

Monday, Dec. 10th at 8pm Concert Hall

CONCERT – 145TH ANNIVERSARY OF RACHMANINOFF’S BIRTH

Aleksandar Sinčuk, piano Programme: Fantasy Pieces op. 3 Musical moments op. 16 Preludes op. 23, Nos. 4, 5, 6 Etudes-tableaux op. 33, Nos. 5, 6, 7 Sonata No. 2, op. 36 Wednesday, Dec. 12th at 8pm Concert Hall Nenad Vasilić, contrabass Marko Živadinović, accordion Romed Hopfgartner, saxophone Production: Metropolis Music Thursday, Dec. 13th at 8pm Concert Hall

PREMIERE OF THE OPERA „LA SERVA PADRONA“

by Giovanni Paisiello will be held within the Project Young@Opera on December 13th in Kolarac Concert Hall. Kolarac Foundation participates as a partner of the Operosa.

Friday, Dec.14th at 8pm Concert Hall

ASCENSION 2

27

DEC

20:00

DANCE WITH THE PHILHARMONIC:

NEW YEAR’S CONCERTS Grand Hall of the Kolarac Foundation

Conductor: Óliver Díaz Soloist: Lucero Tena, castanets

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Conductor: Cristian Mandeal Soloist: David Fray, piano A. Pärt: Fratres F. Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 2 F. Delius: The Walk to the Paradise Garden R. Strauss: Death and Transfiguration Production: Belgrade

Philharmonic Orchestra Saturday, Dec. 15th at 8pm Concert Hall

NEXUS

Jelić, Šandorov, Krumes Sunday, Dec. 16th at 8pm Concert Hall

CONCERT ON THE OCCASION OF ROMANY DANCES AND MUSIC FESTIVAL

Monday, Dec. 17th at 8pm Concert Hall

SEDRA

Opera in Five Pictures Project Organizer: Queen’s Choir Tuesday, Dec. 18th at 8pm Concert Hall

CYCLE: ARTIST & EDITOR VISIT

Aleksandar Serdar, piano Programme: Scarlatti – 6 Sonatas Beethoven – Sonata Op. 13 in C minor, Sonata Op. 57 in F minor Andrija Mamutović, concert guest Bach – Capriccio on the departure of a beloved brother in B major, BWV 992 Brahms – Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel , Op. 24 in B major Piano duo Schubert – Fantasia in F minor for piano four-hands Production: Music Centre Friday, Dec.21st at 8pm Concert Hall

FREEDOM 3

Conductor: Daniel Raiskin Soloist: Alexander Buzlov, violoncello

Elgar: Violoncello Concerto D. Shostakovich: Symphony No. 8 Production: Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra Sunday, Dec. 23th at 8pm Concert Hall

BEMUS REFLECTIONS

Simon Trpceski Makedonissimo!

The most beautiful Macedonian traditional melodies in the interpretation of Pande Shahov in cooperation with Simon Trpceski SIMON TRPCESKI, piano ALEKSANDAR KRAPOVSKI, violin ALEKSANDAR SOMOV, cello HIDAN MAMUDOV, clarinet, saxophone, kaval VLATKO NUSEV, percussion Production: CEBEF Thursday, Dec.27th at 8pm Concert Hall

DANCE WITH THE PHILHARMONIC – NEW YEAR’S CONCERTS 1

Conductor: Óliver Díaz Soloist: Lucero Tena, castanets Production: Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra More information – 0112630744 Friday, Dec.28th at 8pm Concert Hall

DANCE WITH THE PHILHARMONIC – NEW YEAR’S CONCERTS 2

Conductor: Óliver Díaz Soloist: Lucero Tena, castanets Production: Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra

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