A Successful Visit to Serbia

The meeting took place on the morning of the fourth and last day of a busy trip. The Rector had a lengthy discussion with the Deputy Minister on a range of issues, including increasing quotas for students from Serbia studying in Russia, scholarships, and the expansion of academic exchanges. There appeared to be genuine enthusiasm with the idea of bringing the 'Belgorod Days' cultural festival to the Serbian capital, with a member of the staff suggesting it be part of an educational program.

After an auspicious start, the Rector and his team went back to the University of Belgrade (UB) where they met Dr Petar Bulat, Vice-Rector for Education, to speak about his vision for greater interaction between our universities. Several university faculties are already actively cooperating, BNRU's Law Institute is currently hosting Serbian students. It is hoped that the establishment of the Centre for Slavic Studies will only increase this cooperation by attracting new members. The Belgrade Institute of Political Studies put pen to paper on the Centre's establishing agreement on the last day of the Rector's trip. The Rector also found time to take a tour of UB's Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory, where he met its Professor, Petar Bojanić. They discussed the work of the Institute, and academic publishing.