Between the 8th and 13th of January, Department Counselor Derek Chollet will be travelling to the United Arab Emirates, North Macedonia, Kosovo, and Serbia.
Counselor Chollet will first travel to the United Arab Emirates from January 8-10 as part of an interagency delegation to participate in the first meeting of the Negev Forum Working Groups. While there, he will co-chair the Regional Security Working Group and hold consultations with representatives from the governments of Bahrain, Egypt, Israel, Morocco, and the United Arab Emirates. The second leg of Counselor Chollet’s trip will be to Israel from January 14-17 as part of an interagency delegation to participate in the first meeting The promotion of efforts to enhance regional integration and collaboration will be the primary focus of the discussions.
On the margins of these multilateral sessions, he will undertake bilateral engagements with important Emirati authorities on the most recent events in the region and throughout the world. These engagements will include discussions on the Russian attack on Ukraine, as well as Libya and Iran, among other topics.
Following that, Counselor Chollet will spend January 11-13 travelling around North Macedonia, Kosovo, and Serbia. The purpose of the remaining leg of Counselor Chollet’s trip is to emphasise the unwavering commitment of the United States to the maintenance of peace, stability, and prosperity in the Western Balkans.
On January 11, Counselor Chollet will travel to Skopje, North Macedonia with a separate interagency group. While there, he will meet with officials of the government to address a variety of topics, including energy, the economy, and the fight against corruption, among other topics. These efforts include participation in the EU-facilitated Dialogue, which aims to reach an all-encompassing agreement on the normalisation of relations between Kosovo and Serbia, with a primary focus on mutual recognition.
On the 12th of January, Counselor Chollet will continue his trip to Belgrade, Serbia, where he will meet with the leadership of the Serbian government to discuss energy security, regional economic integration, and progress towards Serbia’s aim of membership into the EU. He will also talk on Serbia’s role in bolstering regional peace and security, as well as Serbia’s ongoing participation in the Dialogue to Normalize Relations with Kosovo, which is being supported by the European Union.
