InFocus USA

America - 2020 -

USA & SERBIA

COOPERATION BUILT ON A STRONG FOUNDATION Professor ZORANA MIHAJLOVIĆ, PhD

H.E. ANTHONY F. GODFREY

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure

U.S. Ambassador in Serbia

ZORAN PETROVIĆ President of AmCham Serbia and Director General of Raiffeisenbank

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THE FIRST NATIONAL PARK

Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in the western United States, with parts in Wyoming, Montana and Idaho. It was established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872. Yellowstone was the first national park in the U.S. and is also widely held to be the first national park in the world.

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NO OFFICIAL LANGUAGE

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THE FIRST CAPITAL OF THE UNITED STATES

Washington, D.C. didn't become the nation's capital until 1790. The first city to hold the title was Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, when the First Continental Congress met there in 1774.

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Interestingly enough, the USA have no official language. But most of the individual states do have, and in many cases they have another official language apart from English. In Hawaii, Hawaiian is official, and in South Dakota, Sioux (Lakota, Nakota and Dakota). Alaska has 20 more indigenous official languages apart from English.

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THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

The Library of Congress is one of the largest libraries in the world. Its "collections are universal, not limited by subject, format, or national boundary, and include research materials from all parts of the world and in more than 450 languages. Fun Fact: the Library of Congress is keeping an archive of every tweet ever tweeted.

Or not so much fun?

THE FLAT LA

Los Angeles is not as “tall” as other large cities and sprawls for miles. One reason is that before 1957, there was a law against any building having more than 13 stories. They were afraid of earthquakes. City Hall, built in 1927, was the lone exception. It also had one of the most extensive tram (streetcar) networks in the world.

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THE FIRST U.S. CITY TO HOST THE OLYMPICS

The United States didn't host the Olympic Games until the Summer Games in 1904. The city to receive the honor was St. Louis, Missouri. St. Louis was the first non-European city to host the Games. Since then, Lake Placid, New York; Los Angeles and Squaw Valley, California; Atlanta, Georgia; and Salt Lake City, Utah all hosted the Olympics.

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THE FIRST NATIONAL MONUMENT

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D OLLAR – THE AMERICAN DOLLAR?

Enacted in 1906, the American Antiquities Act established the protection of "natural and cultural resources" in the United States. President Theodore Roosevelt wasted no time and proclaimed four national monuments in that same year. The first of those was Devils Tower in Wyoming, famous for the Steven Spielberg’s film.

Dollar is the American currency, but approximately two-thirds of the dollar bills are located outside of the USA, being the “world money”.

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TIME HAS COME FOR BRAVE 06 THELEADERS Professor Zorana Mihajlović, PhD

TANJA BANKOVIĆ Editor in Chief

tanja.bankovic@color.rs

ILIJA PETROVIĆ INDIGOCHILD” Art director

indigochild.ilija@gmail.com

NATAŠA NEŠIĆ

Advertising director natasa.nesic@color.rs

JOVANA MARKOVIĆ Advertising manager

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure

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OUR STRATEGIC AIM IS TO SUPPORT SERBIA'S GOAL IN EUROPEAN INTEGRATION H.E. Anthony F. Godfrey U.S. Ambassador in Serbia

THE IMPLEMENTATION OF 14 REGULATIONS IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THEIR FREQUENT CHANGE

Zoran Petrović

jovana.markovic@color.rs

President of AmCham Serbia and Director General of Raiffeisenbank

JELENA RANDJELOVIĆ jelena.randjelovic@color.rs

WE SHOULD GO BACK TO THE 18 CLEAR RULES OF THE GAME, NOT BUSINESS AS USUAL

DRAGANA RADOVIĆ

Aleksandar Jakovljević

Advertising manager

Advertising manager

dragana.radovic@color.rs

RUŽA VELJOVIĆ Magazine director

ruza.ristanovic@color.rs

ROBERT ČOBAN Director

robert.coban@color.rs

Photos

GORAN ZLATKOVIĆ GETTY IMAGES Translation

SNEŽANA BJELOTOMIĆ Print

ZLATNA KNJIGA Jagodina, Bagrdanski put bb

Managing Director of Philip Morris for Southeast Europe

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NEW STRATEGIES AND NEW WAYS OF DOING BUSINESS

Nicolaas Houwert

General Manager of Hilton hotel Belgrade

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CAREER TRANSITION - DO YOU HAVE BACK UP PLAN?

Marina Kreculj Pešić

Senior HR Partner, Assert

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BUSINESS MODEL RESILIENT TO CHALLENGES AND LACK OF CERTAINTY

Nikola Narančić

Southeast Europe Sales Director

Branislav Savić

Plant Manager Ball Packaging Belgrade

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INTERVIEW

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THE TIME HAS COME FOR BRAVE LEADERS

Professor ZORANA MIHAJLOVIĆ, PhD

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Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure

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During the pandemic, our main job was to keep Serbia moving and we have managed to achieve that objective. I believe that, in the coming days and months, we will be able to maintain the strong economic momentum that we have started

his is not the time to moan but to spring into action.

The time has come for brave leaders. The only way to adapt to the new circumstances fast is to do everything in our power to keep our economy going. We will certainly not allow the pandemic to destroy everything that has been accomplished during the past years from fiscal stabilization, regulation of public finances, the opening of new factories and the lowest unemployment ever to increase of civil servant salaries and pensions that was covered from real budget revenue", Professor Zorana Mihajlović, PhD, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure, says.

She does not negate the fact that numerous economic branches will feel the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. "Our estimation is that the damages the transport sector has suffered and will suffer due to the COVID-19 pandemic will amount to around half a billion euro by the end of the year. Air traffic was the most affected, where the direct damage due to the suspension of regular flights amounted to around 40 million euro in March alone. The situation is similar in the road and railway traffic, as well as river traffic," says the Deputy Prime Minister and adds: "Tourism, hotels, catering and related economy sectors will certainly record losses.

It is difficult to find an area that has not suffered losses. Just look at the problem that our citizens and travel agencies have found themselves in regard to holiday arrangements that had already been paid for."

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What selective measures does the Serbian government need to implement in response to the challenges in the aforementioned sectors?

One of the most important decisions that the ministry I helm has made at the very beginning of the pandemic was sustaining the largest construction sites. We knew that if the construction works stopped, we would need a lot of time and money to start them again.

Organizing traffic at a time when borders were closed and when the curfew was in place was also a huge challenge because we could not allow any sup-

OUR MAIN JOB WAS TO KEEP SERBIA MOVING AND WE HAVE SUCCEEDED IN THAT ply problems and shortages in stores.

Of course, together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Cabinet of the President of Serbia, we helped Air Serbia to repatriate thousands of our citizens who were trapped at airports around the world and to deliver much-needed humanitarian and medical assistance. Now, you can see how visionary was the decision for Serbia to keep its national airline going.

Our main job was to keep Serbia moving and we have succeeded in that.

I would like to thank all construction industry workers whom I consider to be real heroes, as well as to thank drivers,

service technicians, sales staff, pilots and everyone else who worked every day to make it easier for the citizens to get through this very difficult time.

We also devised a set of economic measures to help the private sector, worth 5.1 billion euro. All workers will receive three minimum wages and we have also granted the deferred payment of taxes and of loans. Serbia is also going to be granted loans from international banks under favourable terms and conditions, so I believe that we will be able to maintain the very strong economic momentum that we have started.

Given the strong budgetary financial assistance for businesses, how will this affect plans in your sector?

All ongoing infrastructure projects continue to be implemented and will not be jeopardized. We are currently working on the construction of more than 300 kilometres of new motorways. I believe that, in the end, we will have delays of only several months, which is not worrying. Companies from Serbia, China, Azerbaijan, the USA, Russia and Turkey have not stopped their activities on construction sites in our country. There had been problems with the delivery of equipment, but the works were not stopped at all.

On the other hand, our ministry, which is probably the biggest ministry in the Government of Serbia, set aside 100 million euro to help our health care, our doctors, nurses and other staff in the fight against the coronavirus, as well as to purchase the necessary medical equipment. That mon-

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WE ARE CURRENTLY WORKING ON THE CONSTRUCTION OF MORE THAN 300 KILOMETRES OF NEW MOTORWAYS. I BELIEVE THAT, IN THE END, WE WILL HAVE DELAYS OF ONLY SEVERAL MONTHS 7 AMERICA 2020

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ey was redirected from several projects that we planned for this year, including the launch of the construction of the Surčin-Novi Beograd motorway segment which was postponed. Roads are important, but the health of our citizens takes precedence.

What is happening with the key infrastructure projects in Serbia?

The construction of a high-speed railway from Belgrade to Budapest is the biggest construction project not only in Serbia but in the region too. The construction site in Čortanovci near Novi Sad, where the Russian Railways are digging another tunnel through Fruška Gora, and the construction the largest viaduct in the country, are the two largest construction sites in this part of Europe and there are no problems with them. By the year-end, we expect the Chinese company to will have completed the Belgrade-Stara Pazova road segment, and that, come autumn of 2021, we will have completed the section leading to Novi Sad. Once this is done, the commuting time between Novi Sad and Belgrade will last less than half an hour.

The construction of the Belgrade bypass and the Preljina-Požega motorway section, where the Chinese companies are contractors, are going according to plan. The Turkish company is building a new bridge over the Sava River near Sremska Rača, on the new motorway segment that will connect Belgrade and Sarajevo.

A commercial agreement on the construction of the Moravian Corridor was recently signed with the American-Turkish consortium Bechtel-Enka. How is the implementation of this agreement going?

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Serbia, primarily its road companies, as well as the engineering profession, will benefit a lot from the contract we signed with the largest construction company in the world, Bechtel, stipulating the construction of the Moravian Corridor. We have already made an agreement for the future graduates of mechanical engineering, construction and other faculties to work on this pro-

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IN REGARD TO THE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND SERBIA, I WANT TO EXPRESS MY GREAT SATISFACTION WITH THE STRONGER AND BETTER POLITICAL, ECONOMIC AND CULTURAL RELATIONS

ject, in order to acquaint themselves with new motorway construction technologies on the spot.

Together with the investor, Koridori Srbije, we are here to help and expedite the solution of any problem. Just like the contract stipulates, we expect that Kruševac will have a motorway connection to Corridor by the year-end. After that, Kraljevo should be linked to the Miloš Veliki motorway, and then the main segment of the Moravian Corridor will have been completed by the end of 2023.

You have recently talked to the US Ambassador to Serbia, H.E. Anthony God-

frey about the aforementioned project and the resumption of the railway and air traffic between Belgrade and Priština. What are the expectations of the Serbian side regarding this?

macy, which sees Serbia as the leading partner in the region. I am also glad that the traditional Serbian cuisine, which Ambassador Godfrey likes very much, made its modest contribution to that.

We should not reduce transport and infrastructure to asphalt and stone. They are much more than that. They are also about implementing certain policies and managing political processes. Once it completes the new investment cycle, Serbia is going to have the highest number of motorways in the region. This is an investment in a safe future. There is no reason for Belgrade and Priština not to be better connected transport-wise as that is important both for the Serbs and Albanians living there. However, without Serbs and Albanians reaching an agreement, there will be no permanent and sustainable solution for Kosovo. And no solution for the Kosovo problem means that it would be impossible to reach our main foreign political objective which is a fullfledged EU membership.

A compromise solution, whereby the two sides both stand to lose and gain something and that will satisfy Serbian national interests and protect our citizens, their property and holy sites in Kosovo, is something that Serbia has been insisting on and regarding which we have both the EU's and the US' support.

The uncivilized episode with sanctions on goods originating from Serbia is behind us, and that was the biggest obstacle to the continuation of negotiations to find a permanent solution for Kosovo. I believe that, after the elections in Serbia and the formation of the new government in Priština, we will continue to work on finding a compromise in a much better and faster manner.

In regard to the relations between the United States and Serbia, I want to express my great satisfaction with the stronger and better political, economic and cultural relations that our two countries have today, and I believe that these relations will be even better in the future. It is extremely important that the United States and Ambassador Anthony Godfrey continue to perpetuate the good tradition of American diplo-

What are your expectations for this and next year?

Ahead of us are the parliamentary and local elections that will be held at the end of June. In these elections, I expect that our electoral list, led by Aleksandar Vučić, will earn the new and deep trust of our citizens, because, we, at least the Ministry that I helm, have so many accomplishments to show to our citizens that we have achieved during the last term in the office. Once the votes are

THE CONSTRUCTION OF A HIGH-SPEED RAILWAY FROM BELGRADE TO BUDAPEST IS THE BIGGEST CONSTRUCTION PROJECT NOT ONLY IN SERBIA BUT IN THE REGION TOO

counted, the formation of a new parliament and a new government awaits us.

In terms of the new Government of Serbia, but also the new convocation of the Parliament, I expect changes at all levels. New people get their chance because only fresh blood can bring the necessary new energy and new ideas for the times ahead. But, I also expect that success and achieved results will be one of the most important criteria that Serbian voters will use when electing a new government and parliament members. In the end, the state of emergency and pandemic showed that expertise and experience are key in situations when difficult and important decisions need to be made for citizens and the state.

On the other hand, I believe that the vast majority of citizens, including me, will also use this year to get used to a new way of life, to living with the virus. Many things will be different, travel will not be the same, our societies will change. It seems that the whole world will transition from globalization to the time of disintegration, in which everyone will take much more care of themselves than before. It will certainly be very challenging to lead the country in these new circumstances in which we need to find the right place for Serbia in such a changing world.

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INTERVIEW

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OUR STRATEGIC AIM IS TO SUPPORT SERBIA'S GOAL IN EUROPEAN INTEGRATION H.E. ANTHONY F. GODFREY U.S. Ambassador in Serbia

My top objective is to help Serbia achieve its priority goal of taking steps required for European Union accession. There is a clear roadmap of the work that needs to be done, and the U.S. Embassy is committed to its partnership with Serbia to make progress in all those areas

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ur cooperation during this situation with the COVID-19 global crisis is built on a strong foundation that is the friendship between our two countries. We have been here in the past, we will get through this crisis together, and we will be here for Serbia in the future. The commitment of the United States to supporting peace, prosperity and Serbia’s main goal of joining the EU remains solid”, says H.E. Anthony F. Godfrey, the US Ambassador in Serbia in this interview in which we talked about many aspects of relations between the two countries spanning

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from the economic potential and new venues of partnership to support and military cooperation.

You have recently participated in the international online conference „Serbian-American relations facing the COVID-19 challenges”. What has the cooperation between the US and Serbia during the COVID-19 pandemic been like?

In the era of Covid-19 and during the recovery, our cooperation will open a new chapter. This is something I am sure we all can be proud of. The USA

has strengthened Serbia's position in this crisis and we share the same goals for a return to health and prosperity.

We are confident that Serbia, America, and our partnership will emerge from this crisis stronger than ever.

At the beginning of this crisis, after Serbia closed its airports to international flights, we were able to help the American citizens who wanted to leave the country. We are very grateful to Serbia for its help with this.

We have allocated more than $2 million in emergency assistance to help Serbia to prepare laboratory systems, support tech experts, bolster

risk communication and more. The United States also donated 6,000 test kits in April. We have been working with the Red Cross on food and hygiene packages for 4,000 Serbian families, and we partnered with UNICEF and other international partners to provide supplies for vulnerable families with children, as well as for families in refugee camps. We also funded the import of 200 oxygen concentrators that will help smaller, lessequipped health centers to cope with cases and we’re working on bringing in a supply of pulse oximeters which will help facilities to monitor the progress of COVID-19 patients. We did this not just to be generous, but also because we are pragmatic. As I have mentioned, pandemics and threats don’t respect national borders. Helping countries like Serbia to improve public health brings us closer to a worldwide solution.

But Serbia also helped the USA. The assistance in two repatriation flights to America was really amazing and it is something that I wish once again to express my gratitute to Foreign Minister Dačić and Air Serbia.

In terms of economy, could you tell us about the donations and support of the private sector during the global COVID-19 pandemic?

Serbia entered this crisis in a strong fiscal position, with a stable currency and good capitalisation of banks. The economic hit is going to be hard, but I think Serbia will be able to overcome it.

I am delighted by the support of the private sector. Our biggest investor, Philip Morris, donated medical equipment worth over EUR 400,000. Microsoft has provided free access to networking applications for schools and remote learning, United Group gave USD 3m to the region, including USD 1m to Serbia. I would personally like to repeat my thanks to dozens of companies, Serbian and American, for their help. We are also working with the Serbian government and civil society to facilitate assistance and donations from the Serbian diaspora. We have supported donacije.rs, an online fundraising platform, and have been trying to

ease the restrictions that are preventing PayPal from operating here. These are two important tools that facilitate the diaspora’s support.

We have invested over a billion dollars in assistance funding over the last two decades, including donations of medical supplies in Niš, which is now fully equipped for coronavirus testing.

The Medical Center in Niš is doing a great job in fighting COVID-19. Investments have been flowing into Serbia in the recent years, and I have reason to believe that they will continue to flow after this crisis too. I am confident we can tackle all these challenges together and secure the real prosperity for Serbian people. The bottom line is this - Serbian-American cooperation remains more important than ever.

I AM AN OPTIMIST AND BELIEVE THAT SERBIA AND KOSOVO WILL FIND A WAY TO RETURN TO THE BRUSSELS DIALOGUE THIS YEAR

How would you summarize bilateral relations between the US and Serbia to an ordinary Serbian reader or to prospective American investors who, up to this point, could inform themselves about the topic only through the media?

U.S.-Serbian relations are strong and getting stronger every day. The United States and Serbia enjoy an open, honest relationship. We don’t agree on every issue, of course. But we have a long history of friendship. We fought together in both world wars. Today both nations share the same top strategic goals for Serbia, namely European integration, which means guaranteeing a future of peace and prosperity for the people of Serbia and the entire region. Serbia and the U.S. can accomplish a lot together. One of my jobs, of course, is to try to make sure this positive story about

the U.S.-Serbian partnership becomes more widely known here.

What are your first impressions? How can you, as the US Ambassador, contribute the most to moving our relations forward?

I arrived here in October of last year and my first impressions and those of my family really could not be more positive. Serbia is a vibrant, energetic, welcoming country. You might already know how much I have been enjoying the local culture, including the incredibly amazing Serbian food.

What really stands out to me is the people. Serbians are so welcoming and generous. And they’re so gifted with languages. Since taking up my new position in Belgrade, I’ve already had the chance to visit several cities in pretty much every corner of this country. In each of these places, I have met with citizens who are active in their communities.

Everyone I meet with has the same concerns as people in American and throughout the world. They want stable jobs, safe places to live, and a good education and bright future for our kids.

It’s clear that Serbia’s doors are wide open for new investment. The workforce is skilled and Serbians work hard. American firms already have invested more than $4 billion in Serbia, and 20,000 Serbians receive paychecks from U.S. companies. But the country’s top leadership is eager to attract even more business. Additional investment will create more jobs, helping Serbia combat the scourge of brain drain. My team and I will do whatever we can to assist.

Let me also mention, however, that entrepreneurs and businesspeople, who are creating great products, and – most importantly – giving people jobs, are keenly interested in ending corruption and improving the rule of law. That’s because investors, whether Serbian or American or whatever, want predictability, which gives them the confidence to invest in this country’s future prosperity. So, the U.S. Embassy is focusing on rule of law issues, as well as take steps to promote economic development.

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We often see Kosovo as the only important issue our two sides discuss.

What would you mention as the other topics which are the focus of your discussions with Serbian interlocutors?

Well, there’s no question that a lasting agreement to normalize relations with Kosovo is critically important. An agreement will inevitably require compromises from both sides. That might not make everyone happy. But in the long run, normalization will have tremendous benefits. It will bring an added level of stability to the region. Echoing what I said earlier, that will mean more investment. And that will mean better jobs for more people and progress toward EU membership.

How much has your diplomatic experience gained in Russia helped you to better understand the milieu in Serbia and the region?

All diplomats take what they’ve learned from their past experiences, including both successes and mistakes, and try to apply that to their work in their new assignments. But every country and everyone’s assignment is different, too.

I have deep respect for the history and culture of Russia and a true affection for the Russian people. I am concerned, however, by the trends there, including attacks against journalists, limits on freedom of expression and human rights, and the lack government accountability.

And I recognize that Serbia and Russia are close and they should have positive relations. However, it’s clear to me that their interests do not always align. Serbia is an independent, sovereign country that will determine its own future. The country’s leadership has made it a priority to return to the fold of the European family through the EU membership process. We support and will help Belgrade in achieving that aspiration.

Certainly Serbia is much smaller market. What is the potential interest for mutual cooperation both related to investment and trade?

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Well, Serbia is actually not such a small

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WITH NEARLY 30 MILLION USD PER YEAR IN ASSISTANCE, WE ARE SERBIA’S LARGEST BILATERAL DEVELOPMENT PARTNER market when compared to its neighbors. This country is blessed by its geographic location at the crossroads of Europe. Foreign companies naturally see it as a springboard into the rest of Southeast Europe or even into the broader European market. The potential here is enormous. The business climate is strong and improving as time goes on, which you see reflected in the World Bank’s annual Doing Business Report.

One really promising area of development is the high-technology services sector, which constitutes over 6 percent of Serbian GDP and employs 45,000 people here. I should mention that U.S. firms are already very interested and active in this sector in Serbia. Take for example the American company NCR, one of our largest investors here. NCR

is currently building a new campus in New Belgrade to provide digital services to companies worldwide, larger than the firm’s headquarters back in Atlanta.

And we Americans are looking forward to further expanding our cooperation on infrastructure investment. The new U.S. Development Finance Corporation (DFC), established just last year, has chosen the Balkans as an area of strategic focus. It has $65 billion to invest worldwide, and is seeking to cooperate with donors and private investors to spur development projects in diverse areas including infrastructure, energy, and environmental protection. Serbia is a perfect place to do just that.

How do you coordinate your work with the efforts of institutions such as the American Chamber of Commerce, USAID and other relevant stakeholders?

My job is to help connect smart people so they can get their ideas off the ground. So we are in regular contact with the American Chamber of Commerce, which explains why our efforts mesh so well with what the business community is doing. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission in Serbia, of course, is part of the U.S. Embassy, and its work is inte-

gral to the U.S. strategy to support Serbia’s own development priorities. USAID has been instrumental in several projects that have made concrete contributions, including the founding of the National Alliance for Local Economic Development (NALED). That organization has become a key partner in advocating for reforms in business regulation and taxation. That makes it easier for small and medium businesses to grow and thrive. USAID also has long worked with Serbian companies and government offices to identify bottlenecks and work together on solutions to make easier to do business here. So we’re proud of what USAID and the whole embassy team have done and continue to do to help Serbia realize its democratic and economic aspirations.

resources as incentives to improved relations between Belgrade and Pristina.

Having in mind that both countries are facing elections, which usually slow down bit the pace of activities of officials a bit, what are the realistic expectations when we think about 2020?

Serbia and America have had excellent relations for over a hundred years, and I would say that elections won’t get in the way of our cooperation [or progress]. Our economic and cultural ties are strong and growing, and they will continue to grow and deepen throughout 2020 and beyond. My team and I

SERBIA IS AN INDEPENDENT, SOVEREIGN COUNTRY THAT WILL DETERMINE ITS OWN FUTURE

What are your goals when it comes to development assistance?

Along with overcoming this crisis, my top goal is to help Serbia achieve its priority goal of taking those steps required for European Union accession. There is a clear roadmap of the work that needs to be done, from media reform to rule of law, from environmental protection to promotion of economic development. The U.S. Embassy is committed to its partnership with Serbia to make progress in all those areas. With nearly 30 million USD per year in assistance, we are Serbia’s largest bilateral development partner.

During President Vucic’s recent trip to Washington, he met with the CEO of the Development Finance Corporation.

The U.S. is prepared to offer significant

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EU ACCESSION

will continue to work hard to ensure that our support for Serbia’s advances toward EU accession. The U.S. commitment to supporting peace, prosperity, and Serbia’s own top goal of joining the EU remains solid.

In terms of Belgrade and Pristina, I am convinced the momentum we have already created on jumpstarting mutually beneficial economic projects will sustain itself throughout this year and beyond. I am an optimist and believe

that Serbia and Kosovo will find a way to return to the Brussels Dialogue this year. Doing so is necessary to ensure a bright, secure, and prosperous future for the people of this region.

Let me just add, too, that no matter what, the United States is also committed to its longstanding partnership with Serbia to address our shared security challenges. We’ll maintain our robust level of cooperation as we face common threats. Together we are promoting effective disaster and crisis response initiatives, as well as cooperating in cyber defense, military medical engagements, and counterterrorism efforts.

People might not realize this, but the United States is actually Serbia’s most active military partner, largely through Serbia’s strong ties with the Ohio National Guard. Our military-to-military cooperation is primarily focused on preparing Serbia’s peacekeeping forces for support to the nine UN and EU missions around the world to which they’re currently deployed.

You are very active on social networks and you travel a lot across Serbia.

What are your overall impressions?

This country is filled with great sites, friendly people, and really good food, just like I mentioned before. I am surprised by how much diversity there is here in terms of music, scenery, and culture. I hope my tweets convey my appreciation and respect for my family’s new home. I’m actively encouraging more Americans to visit – once travel it is safe again to travel, of course. They won’t regret it.

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THERE IS A CLEAR ROADMAP OF THE WORK THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE, FROM MEDIA REFORM TO RULE OF LAW, FROM ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION TO PROMOTION OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 13 AMERICA 2020

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HUGE POTENTIAL FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF ECONOMIC COOPERATION MARKO ČADEŽ

President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia (CCIS)

When it comes to the trade between Serbia and the United States, despite the significant growth in the past two years, the achieved trading results are far below the real possibilities. The potential for trade growth and greater use of the benefits of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) is indeed great n the past period, the economic cooperation between the two countries was primarily focused on American investments in Serbia. An increasing number of American investors in Serbia every year, and their contribution through production, exports and employment is increasing. According to American sources, the total investments of the US companies in Serbia, including investments from their European branches and through global acquisitions, have amounted to around 4 billion dollars, says Marko Čadež in an interview for INFocus America.

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What is the impact of development aid on strengthening the economic sector, especially SMEs?

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According to the statements from American officials in Belgrade, the United States, as one of the largest bilateral donors, has invested more than a billion dollars of development aid in Serbia in the past two decades, which is very important for our economy not only because of the amount of funds but also because that money was invested in programs that Serbia needs and which serve the overall economic and social development.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia is actively involved with the current USAID projects - the Cooperation for Growth project and the Competitive Economy project, but also with previously completed programs such as the Business Enabling Project (BEP).

Together with USAID, the Chamber has implemented several activities with active participation from business people who were project beneficiaries. In addition to being the host of the official presentation of the 1,000 Companies Survey, which, this year, is being conducted for the ninth consecutive time, we have also worked together on creating and proposing a regulatory framework for an improved business environment, expediting economic growth and job creation, inspection reform, increasing the diversity and availability of financing sources financing for the private sector, primarily MSMEs, boosting e-commerce, increasing the capacity of small and medium-sized enterprises in the food industry and their value chains, improving competitiveness, innovation and the ability of Serbian companies to better position themselves in regional and international markets, etc.

We have also been cooperating in recent months, during the pandemic.

We conducted a survey in the business sector called „Together Through Crisis“ which helped us to better understand the situation in the economy, detect the problems faced by companies and their expectations and to formulate the best possible proposal of activities and measures to eliminate the consequences of the health crisis.

How much have different support programs contributed to improving the trade between our two countries?

In terms of Serbia-the US trade, and despite the significant growth in the past two years, the worth of the external trade between the two countries, which stands at 854.4 million dollars, of which Serbian exports amounted to 303 million dollars, is far below the real possibilities. The potential for trade growth and better utilization of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) is great. The agricultural and food sector, metal processing (car parts and metal processing), textile and furniture industry and energy (wind and solar farms) can increase exports to the US and boost the cooperation (between the two countries). I should also mention the armament industry, which recorded a significant export of ammunition for hunting and sports in the previous period.

THE UNITED STATES HAS RECOGNIZED THE OPPORTUNITY FOR HAVING A CONSTRUCTIVE ROLE IN THE WESTERN BALKANS, PROVIDING A NEW ECONOMIC APPROACH TO RESOLVING CHALLENGES IN THE WESTERN BALKANS The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia is very committed to promoting Serbia as a destination for American investments, especially export-oriented ones, as well as promoting the potential of Serbian companies to increase exports to the US and connect with US companies. In addition to the activities of USAID projects which have been contributing to the improvement of the economic environment in Serbia and building the capacity and competitiveness of the economy and companies individually as a prerequisite for trading in a more successful market, such as the US, thanks to USAID's technical and financial support,

our top food producers participated in the Fancy Food Show in New York City last year. We also received significant financial support from USAID for our companies presenting themselves at the national pavilions at fairs such as PLMA in Amsterdam and Fruit Logistica in Berlin.

If it weren't for the current health crisis, business delegations would have already travelled to the US this spring, which was agreed with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce back in January. According to that agreement, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce would organize an American business delegation's visit to Serbia and vice versa, during which businesses from Serbia and the region would present in the United States their potentials and new opportunities that are opening up to potential investors with a formation of the common Western Balkan market. These talks are an excellent basis for the realization of our activities once the pandemic subsides, i.e as soon as conditions permit because they are mutually beneficial.

The Generalized System of Preferences is valid for Serbia until the end of 2020. Do you expect it to be renewed in 2021 and how important is it for boosting external trade (between the two countries)?

We believe that, despite the current problems and the effort on eliminating the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Congress and the President of the United States will make a new decision on extending Serbia's preferential trade status early next year, after the current one expires. All the more so because the GSP program is mutually beneficial for the economies of the two countries and can significantly affect the better use of potential and the improvement of trade between Serbia and the United States.

The fact that Serbian businesses can export over 3,500 mostly industrial and agricultural products duty-free or at minimal export duties to a market as big as the American is very important for them. As a result of constantly providing information to our mem-

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During my stay in America, I also talked about this with the leading people of the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI). The COVID-19 pandemic has only temporarily postponed the implementation of important agreements we concluded with our American partners and the announced visit to Serbia of the representatives of the ITI. We received a lot of praise and good evaluation from our American interlocutors regarding our activities on the digitization of the economy, increasing the export of IT services and developing educational programs for IT professionals. We also received support for our Chamber's and the members' initiative open the Serbian House in Silicon Valley, which would host entrepreneurs and technology experts from Serbia and the Western Balkans and improve the ties with this global technology hub. bers, their participation in conferences and training sessions organized by our Chamber in the past period, a number of companies are now familiar with the GSP system and have been increasingly using its benefits.

This is validated by the data on the increasing use of preferences, which only last year increased by 20 percent compared to the previous year. Last year, we also had the pleasure of hosting representatives of the USTR office responsible for the development and coordination of American international trade policy and allowed our business community to learn first-hand about the benefits of this system.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia has set up the first Serbian IT business accelerator in the US, and you have also announced the opening of the Serbian House in Silicon Valley. IT cooperation was also one of the topics you discussed at the meeting you had in Washington, D.C. in January this year.

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Trading in services is gaining on importance in the external trade between the two countries, with both export and import of services growing by a third last year (to amount to 800 million dollars).

Unlike trading in goods, in which Ser-

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THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY OF SERBIA IS VERY COMMITTED TO PROMOTING SERBIA AS A DESTINATION FOR AMERICAN INVESTMENTS bia has been recording a deficit when it comes to trading in services, Serbia's export to America was worth 596 million dollars and has a surplus that exceeds the value of exported goods to America. The fast-growing Serbian ITC sector, which the world and American media call the Western Balkan Silicon Valley and whose innovative products are already used by American companies and institutions, has special potential for further boosting the trading in services. For us, this is especially important when we know that America holds a third of the global IT services market, is among the most innovative countries in the world and the seat of the largest multinational technology companies.

The US also supports the formation of a so-called Mini Schengen Area in the Western Balkans. Why is this so important?

Strengthening regional integration, faster European integration of the Western Balkan countries and formation of the Mini Schengen Area were the focus of all the meetings I had with influential representatives of American institutions and organizations (congressmen, senators, the State Department, the Atlantic Council experts, and the representatives of the business sector and associations) during my stay in Washington. Efforts to build a common regional economic space in the Western Balkans, the formation of the Mini Schengen Area and the activities of the Chamber's ZB6 Investment Forum received, without exception, the unequivocal support of the American interlocutors.

The United States has recognized the opportunity for having a constructive role in the Western Balkans, providing a new economic approach to resolving challenges in the Western Balkans, such as the Kosovo problem, contributing to stability in the region and supporting the Mini Schengen project as a new agenda for growth and economic strength and expediting reforms to

The news that Serbian and Kosovar businesspeople renewed their business relations and that trade was running smoothly went relatively unnoticed in the media. How important was the influence of American diplomacy in this progress?

make the Western Balkan economies more ready to join the European Union as quickly as possible. We agreed that it is very important that, through the implementation of previous agreements, the region feels the first effects as soon as possible, so that the economy begins to enjoy concrete benefits.

The common position in all the talks I had at that time, but also in the previous and subsequent communication with the American interlocutors, could be summed up in the following words the Mini Schengen initiative came from the region and the countries that initiated it should continue to own it and lead it, but the US and EU's support for the "new regional agreement“ is especially important. This is in the best interest of the region, but also of the European Union and the United States.

With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, regional economic connections and cooperation, the faster formation of the common Western Balkan market and a deeper involvement of the region in the single legal and economic system of the European Union have become even more important.

The new circumstances have further raised the awareness of the importance of stronger regional connections in the coming period, but also confirmed the readiness of Western Balkan economies to cooperate more closely, as evidenced, for example, in the establishment of green corridors for faster and easier transport of goods in the region.

I also talked about this in my recent telephone conversation with Matthew Palmer, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and US Special Representative for the Western Balkans.

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DIGITIZATION

Serbian and Kosovar business community, as well as the business community of the entire region, which assembles the chambers of commerce that are

WE WILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SEE THE FIRST INVESTMENTS, JOINT VENTURES AND JOINT APPEARANCES OF KOSOVAR AND SERBIAN BUSINESSES IN THE REGION AND THE WORLD members of the Chamber Investment Forum, are grateful to American diplomacy for the new economic approach to solving Balkan challenges, primarily the Kosovo issue. We are especially grateful to Mr. Grenel for his contribution, energy and enthusiasm worthy of all respect. This new approach first resulted in an agreement on the resumption of direct flights between Belgrade and Priština and then contributed to the abolition of the fee introduced by the official Priština, which for almost a year and a half caused great damage

not only to our economies but also to international companies operating here and were the biggest obstacle to further normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina, otherwise crucial for the stability and further progress of the region.

The speed at which the business communities renewed their business relations, following the abolition of the fee, speaks volumes about the importance that mutual communication, making business deals, buying goods from each other and free movement of people, goods and capital has for the companies from both sides of the administrative border.

Although the conditions are incomparable, although the fee was abolished amid the coronavirus epidemic, when transport was difficult everywhere, and although businesses from Kosovo had contracts with suppliers from other markets, which they concluded while the fee was still in place, the mutual trade returned to a half of the one we had in regular circumstances, without the fee, in the same period in 2018. I believe that, with the normalization of the health situation, we will very soon return to the old level and further increase mutual trade. I also believe that we will have the opportunity to see the first investments, joint ventures and joint appearances of Kosovar and Serbian businesses in the region and the world, including the agreed joint presentation of IT companies in America. As always, our business people will receive the maximum support from the chambers of commerce of Serbia and Kosovo as their business associations.

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WE RECEIVED A LOT OF PRAISE AND GOOD EVALUATION FROM OUR AMERICAN INTERLOCUTORS REGARDING OUR ACTIVITIES ON THE DIGITIZATION OF THE ECONOMY 17 AMERICA 2020

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THE IMPLEMENTATION OF REGULATIONS IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THEIR FREQUENT CHANGE ZORAN PETROVIĆ

President of AmCham Serbia and Director General of Raiffeisenbank

We are a country in transition in which regulations change very often. However, we always underlined the need to discuss changes in regulations with the business sector and for laws not to be urgently adopted that often imes are challenging, and we have to take care of the health of our employees.

We have adapted very quickly to the new way of working, so that’s how things are at the moment.

As far as I can see, the feedback from AmCham`s members is quite good. This year’s board of directors has really impressive members - the representatives of Hemofarm STADA, Intercontinental Hotel Group, GlaxoSmithKline, Philip Morris, Represent, Delhaize, Coca Cola, KPMG, Raiffeisen. We have companies from different sectors and that allows us to have a relatively good insight into what is happening today, said Zoran Petrovic, AmCham President.

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You have been at AmCham for many years and you have abundant experience in management positions in the Chamber. How is the organization developing at the moment?

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That’s quite a difficult question to answer. You know, AmCham has a little over two hundred members, and they are all serious companies – American, European and Serbian. We have invested a significant amount of money in this country, and cumulatively we have close to 14 billion euro in capital and generated over 12 billion euro of revenue in 2018. That is quite impressive. Of course, we have members who pay the membership fee and for that membership fee, they require to have

a proper service. The current moment is challenging. Just like other associations of this kind, we are trying to do our best and to be at full service of our companies.

On March 17, we did the first review and the first survey among our members about their opinions of the current economic moment and to what extent the health crisis would affect their companies. In a very short time, more than 80 members, all very large and serious companies, gave their answers. On the basis of these answers and on the basis of interviews, we were able to devise a program of measures that was primarily focused on fiscal and monetary measures, as well as certain sector-specific measures. Of course, we contacted the Government and the President, and most of our proposals were included in the Serbian government’s set of measures. Through our conferences for members, we also try to address various issues that are of interest to them. We recently had a very good and successful conference with people from the Ministry of Finance, including assistant Finance Minister, Mr. Demirović, during which our companies were given answers to all the questions they had and the issues that bothered them, as well as about the implementation government’s programs.

At the very beginning of both your term and the term of the new Board of Directors, you were “greeted” with the COVID-19 pandemic. In your opinion, what was Serbia’s macroeconomic situation like at the pandemic outbreak?

Serbia faced this crisis in a better economic situation than during the 2009 crisis. Macroeconomically speaking, Serbia looks much better. It has a lower debt-to- GDP-ratio of 50%. There is almost no inflation. I think that the last data for March shows that inflation is somewhere around 1.3%. The country also had a quite low realized deficit in 2019 of only 0.2%. Also, Serbia has been improving its export-to-import ration which now stands at between 74% and 75%.

THE ECONOMY IS NOW FOCUSING MORE ON THE PRODUCTION OF TRADABLE GOODS, I.E. THE GOODS THAT CAN BE EXPORTED The economy is now focusing more on the production of tradable goods, i.e. the goods that can be exported. We are also slowly but surely seeing an increase in investment participation.

However, there are still problems if we consider the share of investments in relation to GDP. Still, trends in this segment are improving.

What has also helped us in the past few years are the very important monetary policies of key institutions such as the US Federal Reserve and especially the European Central Bank, bearing in mind that 2/3 of placements here are tied to euro and that over 90% of retail

savings are in foreign currency, mostly in euro. Therefore, in the macroeconomic part, things are looking quite good. Before the crisis erupted, Serbia’s credit rating was also improved.

What are the most important measures for maintaining the set goals regarding the economic growth from AmCham’s stance? Bearing in mind that you are from the banking sector, could you tell us about that sector’s measures too?

As far as AmCham is concerned, we measure the so-called lap time every year, and based on the survey we conducted and the conference we held at the end of last year, we can summarize it through several factors. One is, first of all, a more efficient judicial and legal system and the rule of law, and the other is the part related to the shadow economy and corruption. The latter now occupies a very high place in the surveys we do among our membership. Also, there is the predictability of the business environment. We are a country in transition in which regulations change very often. However, we, as well as other business associations, always underline the need to discuss changes in regulations with the business sector and for laws not to be urgently adopted that often. Furthermore, our members find the predictability of tax regulation very important.

New election and new government await us. What would be AmCham’s priorities in terms of regulation and passing of new laws?

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EVEN MORE IMPORTANT THAN PASSING LAWS IS THEIR APPLICATION AND MEASURING THE RESULTS OF THEIR IMPLEMENTATION 19 AMERICA 2020

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Even more important than passing laws is their application and measuring the results of their implementation. As it often happens, a law is passed and then old procedures are followed in practice. It is more important how we implement regulations than frequently changing them. The efficiency of the judiciary, the rule of law, eliminating corruption, ensuring the predictability of the tax framework and the adoption of regulations and having discussions about regulations are all things that we and the business sector expect to take place.

Let me go back to the previous question regarding the measures related to the banking sector. As you know, the National Bank of Serbia reacted almost immediately by reducing its benchmark interest rate twice, from 2.25 to 1.75 and then to 1.50, and thus made dinar loans for companies more affordable. Furthermore, for those companies, which had already taken out such loans, i.e. the ones that are tied to these variable interest rates, the financial costs of such loans in their balance sheets are now lower. Another significant measure was the 90-day-moratorium on loan repayments. In this way, the pressure on companies’ cash flow is reduced. Plus, the government adopted measures, relating to tax and subsidies for minimum wages which were a great help in the circumstances when a large number of companies are suffering a huge drop in their revenue. The National Bank has also swiftly organized three-month swap auctions, to increase liquidity in dinars, and later, it did the same for foreign currency.

These are all things that have positively affected the liquidity of banks, bearing in mind that banks had close to 2 billion euro blocked as a result of the moratorium. Another important factor was the Central Bank’s indirect influence of primary securities market. It is necessary that the NBS monitors what is happening in that part of the market, because it is important for all of us that the financing of the state is done properly. Commercial banks are the largest investors in the government debt market here, therefore this part should be taken into account. I even suggested and continue to do so for

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IF I HAD TO PICK THREE AMERICAN VALUES AS THE MOST IMPORTANT, I WOULD SAY COMPETITIVENESS, FREE ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND TRANSPARENCY the Central Bank to also participate in the secondary market of government securities, although I was adamantly against this only two months ago, and it buys securities back in case of need.

This is important in order to avoid the cost hike for the state, i.e. an increase in yields on these securities, which would then have a negative impact on both

citizens and the economy, because we are the ones who pay taxes and eventually interest.

Another important measure relates to guarantees for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, because this sector is the most vulnerable and we should always take into account our previous experiences. If we look at what happened in 2009, a significant number of small, micro and medium-sized enterprises suffered a lot. If we add up all defaults that we had in that market segment in the last two or three years, we can see that they amount to almost 25%. So, 25% of loans are at jeopardy of not being repaid due to perils that befell companies, bankruptcies, etc. The 2 billion for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises will come from the credit potential that is the banks’ liquidity potential. The state guarantees each individual placement up to 80% but not more

than 30% of their portfolio. Therefore, the eventual loss for the state is limited to 480 million euro. The good thing about these guarantees is that the companies do not have to repay them immediately, unlike the state. These loans have a grace period of up to one year of grace and two-year-repayment period, so there is time.

How does the development of bilateral relations affect the creation of prospects for American investments in Serbia, and in which way does AmCham cooperate with the new US Ambassador to Serbia on this matter?

Of course, as always-in diplomacy, the better political relations you have, the better the basis for the development of some other relations, cultural, economic, etc. America is the largest economy in the world. As either a founder or a member, America is has a decisive influence in a number of international organizations, including those financial organizations that are very important to us such as the EBRD, the IMF, the World Bank, etc. Therefore, political relations with such a large and serious power are extremely important for Serbia and a prerequisite for expanding economic cooperation. As for cooperation with the ambassador, since March, when I came at the helm of AmCham, we have had several interactions and I can say that this cooperation is going in the right direction. We have excellent cooperation with both the commercial and economic sections of the US Embassy.

Which general American values, as well as American business values, would you say have been embraced

by Serbian businesses and which ones we should embrace?

That's a good question. If I had to pick three American values as the most important, I would say competitiveness, free entrepreneurship and transparency. I think Serbia misses each one of these a little bit. Why competitiveness?

Because I think the state should continue to sell those businesses that are essentially exposed to competition, such as banks, insurance companies, etc. The private sector is much more efficient and better than the state, and that’s the case in all countries. I am a supporter of those people who advocate that the place of the state is primarily in areas that are basic and important for the development of the economy, such as education, health care, construction of infrastructure and so on.

MORE PEOPLE WILL WORK FROM HOME IN THE FUTURE, MAYBE NOT TO THE EXTENT WE SEE NOW, BUT THAT WILL DEFINITELY HAPPEN If we talk about businesses, we think that the state does not belong there, because, as I said earlier, the private sector is much more efficient than the state.

Experience has taught us that, and it is good that the government is slowly solving the problems of large stateowned companies that have been losing money, because we, as in the society, individuals and the economy, will pay less in taxes and will be less annoyed by corruption in those companies and the fact that a lot of money has been wasted.

Changing the way we do business as a result of COVID-19 created new habits- We are working from home and we had to put a certain infrastructure in place. We believe that a large number of AmCham members and the bank you helm have also been working from home. Do you think that this will continue into the future too and will COVID-19 cause certain changes in the perception of that future work?

I think that what the pandemic will bring about big changes which will mainly relate to expediting the existing trends. In terms of working from home, I can speak on behalf of the bank I work for and manage. Today, the number of my colleagues working from home has increased tenfold compared to the period before the pandemic. I used to think that if you occupy a crucial position in a company, you will never be able to work anywhere else apart from your company’s premises. But I was wrong; we can work from home. Of course, we are going to adopt a different view of the use of office space in general over a longer period, and the question of the necessity of office spaces will arise.

More people will work from home in the future, maybe not to the extent we see now, but that will definitely happen.

Working from home is not that simple either and there is a certain amount of stress associated with it. There is no direct contact and conversations with colleagues. Working from home does have its challenges - you need to focus hard and there are other family members who are also working from home and doing their things. That could cause quite a lot of stress.

Therefore, the best and ideal scenario would be a combination of these two things – working from both home and office – while the volume of work done at home will increase.

CHANGING OF CONSUMER'S HABITS Digitization is another thing that has certainly picked up the pace. In terms of banks and in a broader sense, the pandemic has brought about changes in consumer behaviour too. It has increased the use of E-commerce or online shopping. Let me give you an example. If I compare the data from the Q1 of this year in Raiffeisenbank to the data from the Q1 of last year, there is a 60% jump in the volume of transactions executed via mobile devices. Yes, consumer habits will definitely change.

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WE SHOULD GO BACK TO THE CLEAR RULES OF THE GAME, NOT BUSINESS AS USUAL

Photo: Nedeljnik

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What are the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic on the clinical picture of the Serbian economy?

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ALEKSANDAR JAKOVLJEVIĆ

Managing Director of Philip Morris for Southeast Europe

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p until recently, I associated Wuhan only with sports. I first heard about this city last September when our basketball team beat Puerto Rico at the Mundobasket in Wuhan with a fantastic 43-point-difference. The second time this megalopolis was talked about was in October when Serbia brought three bronze medals from the "greatest ever" Military World Games. Only big sports fans probably remembered the name Wuhan these first two times. The third time round, the focus shifted from sports grounds to illegal outdoor markets

and infected bats or pangolins, which is why Wuhan will hardly ever be forgotten. But I hope that the city and the pandemic that originated from it will forever remind us of the fact that was once again validated in the most difficult way possible and that is that we can only trust reliable, proven and legal products,“ said Aleksandar Jakovljević, Managing Director of Philip Morris for Southeast Europe.

CHANGES

More than a decade ago, we have started radically changing our product, our vision of the future, the business model and the way we work

When do you expect things to go back to as they were?

— I hope that never happens. Why would we want companies to return to the bubble that is BAU, and have a new crisis bring them to their knees again?

Do we want to continue to believe and call on science only when we are in a problem from which it is difficult to see a way out? Does it sound good to be so separated from our families that we look forward to staying at home, even if we are forced to by curfew? I think that this pandemic has brought us back from the cold B2B (business-to-business) approach to a much closer H2H (human-to-human) way of functioning and it would be good if things stayed that way. Changes in consumer habits

should also be viewed from a positive angle. Before the crisis, we were shopping "by default"; namely, we enter the store and shop for the brands we had been buying for years. Now, we think more, read labels and are reconsidering earlier choices because the need to feel safer and more protected is stronger than ever. Brands and products that have good quality and are tested represent a better choice than the ones we made earlier, so this can be a great opportunity for them to make their mark.

Still, there is great fear from possible consequences of the so-called Day After, i.e. the post-crisis period. What are you concerned about?

— An optimistic view of the future does not mean that we are not aware of the

not only excise products, but also medicines and currently the most sought after medical and protective equipment, have been lured in by the black market, which clearly tells us that illegal traders put profit above any responsibility in this situation too. That is why it is crucial to return to clear rules of the game ASAP, whereby legal businesses will have the opportunity to recover, without having to deal with additional weight in the form of a growing illegal market, which will disrupt their balance sheets, the state budget and the population's health.

Important economic measures have been devised and implemented both globally and nationally. Do you think that these measures will be helpful?

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In a situation when there was no time for preparation, we are discussing quick solutions for adapting to new working conditions. How fast can they be implemented in a multinational corporation?

— There is an abbreviation that we used every day – BAU – meaning "business as usual". No- one has mentioned or written it for two months because nothing is "as usual" anymore. This was a real test for Philip Morris, which has been working on quick and as easy adaptation to changes for years. More than a decade ago, we radically changed our product, our vision of the future, the business model and the way we work. COVID-19 has expedited changes in business more than any managerial decision so far, but probably because of our long-lasting preparation, we have managed to adapt. Quickly but not easily, we have been and still are fighting a huge fight for the safety of each of our employees, for each mask, for movement permits, for each new working day, for sustaining each export market and for trying to keep consumers who have already made a better choice and switched from cigarettes to scientifically proven less harmful products. Because if those people who were not ready to use the safest option, i.e. to stop using tobacco and nicotine products in any form, resumed smoking cigarettes that would be a defeat for our consumers and for us, but also for the already impaired public health in general.

STRENGTH

I believe that the company's strength is reflected in how reliable is the support it can provide for the community in which it operates, and we have always done that – before and after the crisis turbulence that lies ahead. After the coronavirus pandemic, the economy can easily "get sick" from the growth of the black market. The first symptoms are already visible. We have witnessed that

— Of course, they will be indirectly helpful to us because the faster the economy recovers, the sooner employment will stabilize, purchasing power will increase and the illegal market will decrease. We will not use direct help in the form of state subsidies. This does not mean that our company did not feel the blow - it just means that we are still strong enough at this moment to be able to help through donating medical equipment and by letting other companies use stimulating economic measures because they need it more than us. I believe that the company's strength is reflected in how reliable is the support it can provide for the community in which it operates, and we have always done that – before and after the crisis. 

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NEW STRATEGIES AND NEW WAYS OF DOING BUSINESS This spring we will surprise our guests with a completely new approach to their needs and tastes

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NICOLAAS HOUWERT

General Manager of Hilton hotel Belgrade

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hile the road to recovery will likely be long, we remain positive about the future. When the world is ready to travel again, the team at Hilton Belgrade will be here to welcome guests with the light and warmth of hospitality once more, said General Manager of Hilton Belgrade, Nicolaas Houwert.

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The Hilton Belgrade is one of the few hotels that hasn’t suspended the operations during the Covid-19 crisis, how did you manage to provide all necessary measures and maintain guests’ trust?

— The wellbeing of our guests and Team Members is our highest priority, and we take great pride in maintaining the highest standards of cleanliness and hygiene.

During this period, we developed additional measures in line with local health authorities in Serbia to make our cleaning and hygiene protocols even more rigorous and provide peace of mind for

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everyone that came through our doors.

During the last two months, we have also been proudly supporting our community – we offered complimentary accommodation to a group of 87 members of the Russian Armed Forces who between them have disinfected more than 1.5 million square meters of public spaces and facilities across the country.

This was our small contribution to the COVID-19 battle we all fight together.

In which ways can Hilton Belgrade Hotel can ensure a new level of safety?

— Hilton recently announced Hilton CleanStay – a new programme to deliver an industry-defining standard of cleanliness and disinfection at Hilton properties across the world. Hilton will collaborate with RB, maker of Dettol,

GUESTS

As government restrictions are reviewed, we also look forward to welcoming back our business guests for meetings for up to 50 people and consult with Mayo Clinic, the topranked hospital system in the United States, to develop elevated processes and team member training to help Hilton Belgrade guests enjoy an even cleaner and safer stay from check-in to checkout. The programme will roll out from June across the world so we look forward to sharing more information then.

Do you see new business opportunities For Hilton Belgrade in this new reality that has affected the hospitality industry more than any other?

— While this is a challenging time across the industry, a crisis like this brings the opportunity to look at new strategies and new ways of doing business.

Because of travel restrictions and reduced levels of confidence among travelers in general, in this initial recovery period here at Hilton Belgrade, we will turn our focus to our domestic guests, with an eye on providing exquisite Food & Beverage outlets alongside our signature hospitality we are famous for. Following the safety measures and government recommendations, we started the new season in our Oasis Garden and re-opened the doors to SkyLounge rooftop bar & dining on May 4th. This spring we will surprise our guests with a whole new approach to their needs and tastes.

As government restrictions are reviewed, we also look forward to welcoming back our business guests for meetings for up to 50 people. While we have of course all got used to virtual meetings during this unique time, nothing beats face-to-face connections and we look forward to helping businesses reconnect in a safe way.

What long term effects will this crisis have on the hospitality industry?

— While the road to recovery will likely be long, we remain really positive about the future. When the world is ready to travel again, the team at Hilton Belgrade will be here to welcome guests with the light and warmth of hospitality once more. 

SKYLOUNGE: Pure hedonism #meetthesky

OASIS GARDEN: Your oasis in the heart of the city #petfriendly

HILTON MEETINGS: Your place for a safe meeting #worksafely

011 7555 700

Hilton Belgade, Kralja Milana 35, Beograd hilton.belgrade@hilton.com hiltonbelgrade.hilton.com

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CAREER TRANSITION - DO YOU HAVE BACK UP PLAN? CLICK TO SEE THIS ON WEB

MARINA KRECULJ PEŠIĆ

Senior HR Partner, Assert

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oronavirus pandemic has been provoking fear for our opportunities, its name being the certainty of the uncertain. Peter Dracker framed that ’The only thing we know about the future is that it will be different’. This powerful idea is as liberating as it is inspirational and once we begin to observe career transition through this prism, the powerful tool “to go“ will be added to our existing arsenal.

Letting go of meticulously planned career targets is easily the best thing you could do for achieving smooth career transition. Relinquishing imperative pursue for the ideal workplace, promising company or stable industry leaves us room for the following questions: How do I want to spend my work days? What is one thing I can do without? Such approach gives us a new perspective of more opportunities for our professional needs.

Plan to getting promoted gives way to the process of continuous learning and development. The key element here is being aware what are potential improvement points that could take us

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Our capability to accept and respond to change will define our employability. In this journey we can rely on expert advice

one step further towards success. In WEF research states that successful individual in 2020 is characterized by analytical, critical, flexible, creative thought process as well as emotional intelligence.

It is quite interesting that 5 years later, the list was updated and as a result - listed traits were similar, but sequence was rather different. The logical question is whether these traits would be as valued in altered working conditions due

TRANSITION

Assert consultants may help in providing successful career transition of numerous professionals of different seniority and vocations all over the globe to pandemic, changed in short period of couple of months only ( more details on this topic could be found in the article „10 competences that can guarantee successful work from home“). In short, our capability to accept and respond to change will define our employability.

Continuous learning could be seen as a frustrating strain over never-end-

ing projects or as tool against monotony. The difference lies in the perspective we choose to adopt. Taking active and central role in career transition is crucial. Layoffs do not just happen to us, we face them; we do not just accept offers, we choose them. To regard gap between two assignments as a scenario so catastrophic that can impact our entire career not only is unrealistic, but it is not helping us one bit.

To sum it up, to have a plan B could be transferred into planning the plan B. Re-planning the back-up plan is the only sustainable action we could ever been striving to. What does that mean exactly? It means that we should consider accepting changes in career part as integral part of career development journey (not as some catastrophic turning point) for which we are being conditioned by remaining curious and open to new skills and perspectives.

For systematic professional support that comprises modern tools, current job market information, active professional network and dedicated support Assert consultants are at disposal through Assert official email: info@assert.pro. Programs of career transition facilitated and enabled successful career transition of numerous professionals of different seniority and vocations. 

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Up to date U.S. firms have invested around $4 billion in Serbia. There is growing interest from potential U.S. investors in Serbia, to make cooperation with innovative companies and start-ups in Serbia. Further investments are expected to follow in line with envisaged economic reforms

ccording to the data of the US Embassy in Serbia, there is growing interest from potential U.S. investors in Serbia, in line with positive economic trends and with Serbia’s prospective EU accession. In September 2018, the United States and Serbia signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in infrastructure projects. Further investments are expected to follow in line with envisaged economic reforms aimed at strengthening private sector, improvement of public administration, corporatization of state-owned enterprises, and improved rule of law.

US government supports reforms in the Serbian business sector through USAID. Based on the assumption that Serbia’s economy is constrained by critical barriers to growth and needs further improvements to the business enabling environment in order to attract investments and create jobs, and more vigilant private sector able to compete in regional and international markets, USAID works with selected government counterparts, non-governmental organizations, international donors, and other U.S. agencies to advance reforms that will contribute to economic growth and make Serbia more business friendly. USAID economic growth assistance also helps Serbian firms adopt practices to become more innovative and competitive. USAID is also active In the food processing sector, where it is working across value chains and supports structures to foster a system that will increase competitiveness, sales and exports--creating a model that can be replicated in other

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parts of the Serbian economy. At both the regulatory level and firm level, USAID is working to increase the diversity and availability of financial products and the private sector’s ability to access them.

U.S. firms have invested around $4 billion in Serbia. Among the leading U.S. investors in the country are NCR, KKR, Philip Morris, Molson Coors, Ball Pack-

AMONG THE LEADING U.S. INVESTORS IN THE COUNTRY ARE NCR, KKR, PHILIP MORRIS, MOLSON COORS, BALL PACKAGING, COCA-COLA, PEPSICO, COOPER TIRE, AMETEK AND VAN DRUNEN FARMS aging, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Cooper Tire, Ametek and Van Drunen Farms. According to the same source, many other leading U.S. firms, from a broad variety of industrial and service sectors, have a significant presence. Specifically there has been increased interest from U.S. information technology (IT) companies, with specific emphasis on opportunities in e-government, cloud computing, digitization, systems integration and IT security. NCR, Microsoft, Oracle, FIS, and IBM all have significant IT-related operations in Serbia, along with a growing number of IT start-ups. Serbian IT professionals are highly sought after.

Based on the US Census Bureau data, Serbia’s trade with the United States rose to $490.57 million in 2019. That’s 0.43 percent above its total trade of 2018. U.S. exports to Serbia decreased 9.13 percent while U.S. imports from Serbia rose 5.33 percent. The U.S. deficit with Serbia was $189.36 million. The value of the top five categories of U.S. imports from Serbia –– Electric motors, generators, not sets; Mattresses and other bedding products; Engine parts; Bombs, grenades, cartridges, parts; and Frozen fruit, nuts, accounted for 42.52 percent of all inbound shipments.

Based on the same source, US exports to Serbia fell compared to 2018 for the following items: the civilian aircraft, parts fell 23.08 percent to $29.78 million, low value shipments fell 4.14 percent to $14.24 million, computers fell 9.17 percent to $7.22 million, raw tobacco fell 17.46 percent to $7.19 million.

Tractors rose 150.67 percent compared to last year to $3.66 million.

At the same time U.S. imports from Serbia in category electric motors, generators, not sets, rose 192.5 percent compared to 2018 to $61.23 million, mattresses and other bedding products rose 5510.59 percent to $31.92 million, engine parts rose 41.99 percent to $22.17 million, bombs, grenades, cartridges, parts fell 36.02 percent to $16.56 million and frozen fruit, nuts fell 29.26 percent compared to 2018 to $12.68 million.

In 2018 annual figures available, Serbia recorded $488.49 million in trade with the United States. Total U.S. exports to Serbia were $165.74 million and imports from Serbia were $322.75 million. The U.S. deficit with Serbia was $157.02 million.

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BASED ON THE US CENSUS BUREAU DATA, SERBIA’S TRADE WITH THE UNITED STATES ROSE TO $490.57 MILLION IN 2019 29 AMERICA 2020

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BUSINESS MODEL RESILIENT TO CHALLENGES AND LACK OF CERTAINTY

CLICK TO SEE THIS ON WEB Nikola Narančić, Southeast Europe Sales Director and Branislav Savić, Plant Manager Ball Packaging Belgrade

Despite the pandemic outbreak and a dramatically changing reality, Ball managed to produce solid first quarter results with indications of stable demand for our products in the future

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N

ot everyone looks at aluminum packaging with the passion and purpose like the Ball Corporation does. We brought this commitment, know-how and wealth of experience to Serbia in 2005, when we opened our aluminum can manufacturing plant in Belgrade. This month, we are celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Serbian operation and all the successes we have achieved over this period.

From the early days, our plant in Belgrade has become the benchmark facility and one of the best performing sites globally within our corporation. The talents we have in Serbia and their achievements have been absolutely outstanding over the years. In 2015, the Ball leadership decided to open the Ball Global Business Services in Belgrade, covering and supporting our operations in several countries across the globe. This is an ultimate testimony to outstanding work of our colleagues in Belgrade and also to Serbia as an investment and business desti-

nation, where foreign investors requesting business enabled environment find a place to build and significantly grow their business in many different directions. Our plant in Belgrade represents the biggest US Greenfield investment in Serbia and is a strong symbol of how the two countries can successfully work together. Today, we are a team of 300 people in Serbia who produce over 2 billion cans annually for over 100 customers in 15 countries. 75 percent of our output

CHALLENGES

The Ball Corporation has been operating for over 140 years and has built the business model and culture of resilience and agility ready to face the most colossal challenges

is shipped outside of Serbia, contributing to the country’s exports and international trade balance.

Despite the pandemic outbreak and a dramatically changing reality, Ball managed to produce solid first quarter results with indications of stable demand for our products in the future. Our strategy and top priorities will remain focused on workplace safety, further improvements of the manufacturing process, as well as sustainability and advantages of aluminum packaging. Despite the volatile economic conditions and an uncertain outlook for the future, we remain committed to the business targets we have set and to our people, values and business principles. The Ball Corporation has been operating for over 140 years and we have built the business model and culture of resilience and agility ready to face the most colossal challenges and we strongly believe in a long-term success of our product.

As our CEO, chairman, president and chief executive officer John A. Hayes, “Our company is humbled by the resiliency with which we are able to execute our strategy, maintain employment across global economies and give back

to the communities where we operate."

“Evolution of our operations in Serbia, over the last 15 years, epitomizes what Ball as an organization stands for.

We are committed to our people and they come first in everything we do.

Thanks to them, we came a long way from a Greenfield investment to creating one of the most modern facilities. I

OPPORTUNITY

The challenge ahead of us will be how to “bridge” the short-term uncertainty to the long-term opportunity cannot thank my colleagues enough for their energy, enthusiasm and results they achieve every day. During the pandemic, our people rose to the occasion and helped us deal with the disruption, while minimizing the negative effects and solving all the challenges that came along.

Together with our supply chain, business partners and clients, we secured stable production and supply of our products.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, our people adopted new behaviors that are of the greatest importance for the wellbeing of our employees, their families and the entire society. We have provided all necessary personal protection equipment (PPE), introduced all measures of social distancing and other protection measures.

From the start, the Ball Corporation in Serbia has been operating in full compliance with our global values and integrity of the organization. We have built our distinctive qualities and value proposal on the proximity and relationship with our customers, attention to smallest details, innovation and sense of ownership that is carried within each team member.

We will focus on each other and the safety of all team members. With equal attention, we will continue to do everything in our power to exceed our customers’ expectations.

The challenge ahead of us will be how to “bridge” the short-term uncertainty to the long-term opportunity. I know we can, and we will prevail,” said Branislav Savić, Plant Manager Ball Packaging Belgrade. 

SNAPSHOT OF SOUTHEAST EUROPEAN MARKET “Southeast Europe represents a very dynamic market, and the Ball Corporation is the leader in this region. We reached that position not by accident, but by constant efforts, advancement, and partner relations with our customers.

Regardless of whether they are small producers or large multinationals, we share the same passion for a perfect product, perfect service, innovative and sustainable. In the past several months, we, together with our customers, have

faced something that we did not plan even in the worst-case scenarios. The market reacted, total consumption was somewhat reduced, and regarding the summer season and the rest of the year, we have to be optimists. We expect improvements, in accordance with the several-year trend of increased consumer demand, which we have successfully responded to by increasing our capacities,” said Nikola Narančić, Southeast Europe Sales Director.

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HUMAN APPROACH IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER Development of Our People and Export Orientation as a Core Focus MILORAD KRSTIKESKI

General Manager of British American Tobacco for Serbia and Montenegro

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espite the crisis and reduced production volume, we have managed to save all workplaces, maintain our loyal consumers and support Serbian economy, having all the time a clear strategy for further development and growth.

You took over the function of General Manager on January 1st this year.

Could you please tell us about the biggest challenges you've faced during these six months?

— Such a significant role in one of the leading companies in the world is, above all, a great pleasure and an everyday challenge, but also a privilege on a personal level - being able to further develop career in a multinational company and on such challenging markets.

As for the last six months, it is difficult to single out the biggest one, since the world economies have faced unique difficulties caused by the COVID-19 virus pandemic. Therefore, I believe that it will take some time before the world comes back to where it was before, both socially and economically.

How has the virus affected tobacco business, and markets in which you lead the company?

— Like all industries, tobacco sector has also felt the effects of the pandemic. This has come in the moment when tobacco industry is also transforming and developing new innovative products, thus more changes are definite-

IMPORTANCE

I believe that today this kind of corporate and human approach is more important than ever before ly yet to come. Our product Glo, that heats instead of burning tobacco, is finding its way towards consumers and Serbia, the whole range of new products with potential reduced risk will be introduced soon, while we are always taking care to maintain and innovate our traditional portfolio. This is an evidence of the position that Serbia has on the global market and I am convinced that it will further strengthen in the future.

We read in April about BAT plans to work on plant-based coronavirus vac-

cine, also that your biotech subsidiary, Kentucky BioProcessing (KBP) is developing a potential vaccine. Could you tell us more about these plans?

— As a socially responsible company, we have focused our R&D resources on the development of a vaccine against the new COVID-19 virus. Preclinical trials of the vaccine have shown a positive immune response, and the first phase of the trial could begin as early as the end of June. The method KBP use generates the vaccine faster than the usual methods, which reduces the time needed to grow the active substance from a few months to six weeks.

Recently, BAT have donated significant funds for food supply packages to The Red Cross of Vranje. How much is important to support local municipalities and invest in society?

— Social responsibility has always been one of the core pillars of our company and we have always been striving towards being a part of local community.

We are also very proud that our employees have always been devoted to corporate volunteerism and participated in CSR activities, even in the time of pandemic. I believe that today this kind of corporate and human approach is more important than ever before. 

BEST EFFORT What we can and must do, is give our best effort to maintain business continuity, as well as the safety and wellbeing of all our employees. Investing in our people and their skills by ensuring trainings for their further development, made us ready for the ongoing global digitalization. We are very proud of being able to achieve all that in Serbia and that we are continuing

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with the further improvement of production and investments in our factory in Vranje. In the following period, some of the most respected brands in our portfolio will be produced in Serbia, due to the fact that this production facility is considered to be one of the most reliable in the BAT system. As a result, our focus will shift from the predominantly import market to exports.

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WE INTEND TO FURTHER DEVELOP AND SOLIDIFY OUR PRESENCE IN SERBIA Novartis actively participates in the development of infrastructure solutions that aim to increase the efficiency of the system as well as informed decisionmaking based on quality data. We also believe that this is the future path of health and other segments of society.

FILIP ŽORIĆ

Novartis, Head of Oncology Business Franchise in Serbia

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he pharmaceutical company Novartis is at the top of the world rankings when it comes to research and development of innovative therapies, with more than 200 clinical development projects underway. In our country, Novartis has

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been operating for more than 20 years.

In an interview for InFocus America, Filip Žorić, Head of Oncology Business Franchise in Novartis Serbia, spoke about how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the business, as well as how the company responded to the challenges and how it sees the future.

What challenges did Novartis face and how did it respond to the situation?

— In order to support the efforts of the

Government of the Republic of Serbia in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Novartis, together with its Sandoz division, donated 5.4 million dinars to support the health care system in providing medical equipment, including protective masks, COVID-19 tests, ventilators and other medical equipment necessary for the protection of health workers and the treatment of the population.

Together with other pharmaceutical companies, Novartis’ employees responded to the invitation to volunteer following the AmCham initiative, which

SUPPORT

Novartis, together with its Sandoz division, donated 5.4 million dinars to support the health care system

is being implemented in cooperation with the Republic of Serbia Crisis Unit for the Suppression of the COVID-19 Infectious Disease. The goal of volunteering is to make professional literature in the field of epidemiology, virology and public health available to the professionals from the Crisis Unit s much as possible and in the shortest possible time.

Furthermore, at the request of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia, Sandoz, the generic division of Novartis, donated the required amounts of hydroxychloroquine to the Dr Milan Jovanović Batut Institute of Public Health, which will be distributed to other health institutions in the country.

Also, in response to an urgent call for research and development of pharmaceuticals in the fight against the coronavirus, from the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA), Novartis expressed its readiness to contribute to this significant effort by making available a series of compounds developed in its laboratories which are suitable for in-vitro antiviral testing. Besides, Novartis is evaluating its existing products to determine if any of them could be reassigned beyond their approved indication and has launched a series of clinical trials to that effect.

The cancer mortality rate in Serbia is still higher than in other European countries. At the same time, the European Commission has launched initiatives such as the Europe Beating Cancer Plan and the Initiative on Breast Cancer. Why is even the European Commission now focusing on oncology?

EVALUATION

Novartis is evaluating its existing products to determine if any of them could be reassigned beyond their approved indication and has launched a series of clinical trials to that effect — Cancer is the most common cause of premature death in the population aged 15 to 59, i.e. in the working-age population, and thus represents a great burden on the economy. If we know that the population in Serbia, as well as in the whole of Europe, is getting older, it is even more important to sustain people who can still contribute to the socie-

ty and the economy. Unlike some other diseases, in which primary and secondary prevention measures significantly reduce the incidence of the disease, when it comes to cancer, no matter how much we reduce the risk, about 60% of cancers will still occur. Therefore, countries are trying to reduce mortality by combining screening programmes, i.e. early diagnosis, but also through available innovative therapies, especially when it comes to the most common cancers (breast and lung cancer).

I can see that even in our country this difficult situation has contributed to better recognize the importance of investing in health care. Digital solutions are a very important aspect of improving the system and Serbia has a good basis for it. We have seen how much electronic prescriptions have contributed to the availability of therapies to patients who take their regular therapies in pharmacies. As a member of the Digital Serbia Initiative, Novartis actively participates in the development of infrastructure solutions that aim to increase system efficiency as well as informed decision-making based on quality data, and we believe that this is the future path of health and other segments of society. ď‚Ł

35 AMERICA 2020

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STRONG FUNDAMENTALS UNDERPIN GROWTH

The tech sector is a huge component of the U.S. economy, playing role in almost all other sectors, such as health care, advanced manufacturing, transportation, education, and energy. After 2.3 % GDP growth in 2019 the economy is to slw down on 2 percent a pace that has prevailed during the decade-old economic expansion

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he United States of America is the world's third-largest economy with gross domestic product estimated at $21.734 trillion (estimation 2019),and the GDP growth rate of 2.3% (estimation 2019) and is expected to reach $22.32 trillion in 2020. The U.S. is often dubbed as an economic superpower and that's

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THE US HAS THE MOST TECHNOLOGICALLY POWERFUL ECONOMY IN THE WORLD, WITH A PER CAPITA GDP OF $59,500

because the economy constitutes almost a quarter of the global economy, backed by advanced infrastructure, technology, and an abundance of natural resources. Gross National Income was $19.121 trillion PPP dollars (estimation 2017, World Bank). Inflation stands in low digits with 1.6% year-over-year core rate for December 2019.

There were approximately 160.4 million in the U.S. labor force in 2017, the fourth largest labor force in the world behind China, India, and the European Union. Small businesses are the nation's largest employer providing jobs fr 37% American workers. The second-largest share of employment belongs to large businesses employing 36% of the U.S. workforce while the government accounts for about 14% of all U.S. workers. As of Janary 2020, unemployment rate is 3.6%.

The US has the most technologically powerful economy in the world, with a per capita GDP of $59,500.

The United States is the world's second-largest manufacturer, with the following particularly strong sectors: petroleum, steel, automobiles, construction machinery, aerospace, agricultural machinery, telecommunications, chemicals, electronics, food processing, consumer goods, lumber, and mining.

The U.S. produces approximately 18% of the world's manufacturing output, a share that has declined as other nations developed competitive manufacturing industries. Growth in telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, aircraft, heavy machinery and other industries along with declines in low end, low skill industries such as clothing, toys, and other simple manufacturing have resulted in some U.S. jobs being more highly skilled and better paying.

The MAPI Foundation projects that annual export growth will average 6 percent annually between 2018 and 2021 as a result of increased manufacturing productivity.

The tech sector is a huge component

of the U.S. economy, according to Cyberstates 2018, an annual analysis of the nation’s industry published by CompTIA. Employment among computer and IT is projected to grow 13 percent from 2016 to 2026, faster than the average for all occupations. Demand for additional workers is stemming from cloud computing, the collection, and storage of big data and information security.

US BUSINESS FIRMS ENJOY GREATER FLEXIBILITY THAN THEIR COUNTERPARTS IN WESTERN EUROPE AND JAPAN IN DECISIONS TO EXPAND CAPITAL PLANT, TO LAY OFF SURPLUS WORKERS, AND TO DEVELOP NEW PRODUCTS Technology plays a role in almost all other sectors, such as health care, advanced manufacturing, transportation, education, and energy. The Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, machine learning, autonomous vehicles, and augmented and virtual reality are all changing society and industries.

Construction is another very strong sector which includes residential and nonresidential builders; contractors that install or service mechanical systems like electricity, water, elevators,

and heating and cooling; and civil engineering construction. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, construction and extraction occupations are projected to grow by 11 percent from 2016 to 2026, which is a rate faster than the average for all occupations, and are expected to add nearly 750,000 new jobs. The growth is stemming from overall economic and population growth, which is increasing demand for new buildings, roads, and other structures.

The retail trade accounts for 6 percent of the nation's GDP, with a GDP value-added of $905 billion. The retail industry is the largest employer in the United States, according to World Atlas, and 10 percent of total employment in the United States is in retail. It supports one in four U.S. jobs, or 42 million working Americans. The sector includes online retailers such as Amazon and eBay and brick-and-mortar establishments.

Non-durable manufacturing is a predominant pillar in the United States with a GDP value-added of $821 billion or 6 percent of the national GDP, according to WorldAtlas and for 4.4 million jobs.

US natural resources are valued at $45 trillion as of 2016. It is the world's largest producer of petroleum and natural gas and the world's largest trading nation[2016] as well as its second-largest manufacturer, representing a fifth of the global manufacturing output. The U.S. not only has the largest internal market for goods, but also dominates the trade in services. U.S. total trade amounted to $4.2 trillion in 2018. Of the world's 500 largest companies, 121 are headquartered in the U.S.

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EMPLOYMENT AMONG COMPUTER AND IT IS PROJECTED TO GROW 13 PERCENT FROM 2016 TO 2026, FASTER THAN THE AVERAGE FOR ALL OCCUPATIONS 37 AMERICA 2020

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THE GREATEST From a colony to a metropolis alking about the US economy is like talking about The Rolling Stones. It’s hard to remember when did they become the No 1, and it is also hard to see what their impact is and when they’ll stop being the No 1. America has been the leader of the world economy since 1945, and which influence is so strong that we cannot possibly hide from it in a globalized world.

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FROM COLONIAL FARMERS TO LEADERS The question is whether the globalized world, as imagined by its creators, went hand-in-hand with America, or hand-in-hand with others who have managed to catch up to America.

Let's leave that question to serious analysts. In any case, for 75 years, America has been the largest economy in the world, compared to which other large

economies looked like dwarfs. Bill Bryson said that as early as the 19th century, the British became aware of the fact that, thanks to its vast territory, America was capable of producing milk, corn, wheat, or any agricultural product cheaper and more efficiently. The two world wars that European allies fought on their territory, which caused Germany, Italy, France and Britain to suffer great destruction, while Ameri-

ca avoided the war on its territory altogether (Pearl Harbor aside), contributed to the US becoming the No 1. Of course, the readiness to quickly industrialize and implement all the achievements of the Industrial Revolution was the fuel during the 19th, 20th and 21st century that propelled the American economy to the very top of the world.

THE BIGGEST HITS OF THE U.S. ECONOMY The economy of the United States is highly developed and mixed. It is the world's largest economy by nominal GDP and net wealth and the second-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP). It also has the world's eighth-highest per capita GDP (nominal) and the tenth-highest per capita GDP (PPP) in 2019. The U.S. has the most technologically powerful economy in the world and its firms are at or near the forefront in technological advances; especially in computers, pharmaceuticals, and medical, aerospace, and military equipment. The U.S. dollar is the currency most used in international transactions and is the world's foremost reserve currency, backed by its economy, its military, the petrodollar system and its linked eurodollar and large U.S. treasuries market. The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq are by far the world's largest stock exchanges by market capitalization and trade volume.

HOW DOES AMERICA CONQUER TODAY? Back in the day, America 'conquered' the world with its agricultural products. Although the U.S. was among the first countries to adopt the technolo-

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CURRENCY

THE U.S. HAS BECOME THE NO 1 IN THE WORLD THANKS TO THE SPIRIT OF SMALL ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND GREAT LEADERSHIP IN THE WORLD ECONOMY gies from the British, today, America conquers the world with its capability to set new trends, like Silicon Valley.

If the old technologies discontinue, this leads to devastated regions, such as Rust Belt or Detroit, once one of the most contemporary cities in America, which in turn, results in political up-

heavals in the election. Economic freedom provided by the private sector is a central feature of the U.S. economy which allows the private sector to make most economic decisions in determining the direction and scope of what the U.S. economy produces. This is exacerbated by the relatively low level of regulation and government involvement, as well as the judicial system that generally protects property rights and enforces contracts. As a result, there are 29.6 million small businesses in the United States today, 30% of the world's millionaires, 40% of the world's billionaires, as well as 139 of the world's 500 largest companies. Most firms in America are small businesses, not corporations. The U.S. has become the No 1 in the world thanks to the spirit of small entrepreneurship and great leadership in the world economy, which are the two pillars of the American economy.

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THE U.S. DOLLAR IS THE CURRENCY MOST USED IN INTERNATIONAL TRANSACTIONS AND IS THE WORLD'S FOREMOST RESERVE CURRENCY 41 AMERICA 2020

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ECONOMY

by Žikica Milošević

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GOOGLE MANAGEMENT …and how it changed the world

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ilms like “Hackers” from the 1990s showed the world, in a somewhat naïve way, that computer programmers are people who do not tolerate harsh discipline, who never grow up and who need creativity to make a discovery. All of this often happens through playing, socializing and innovation by way of atypical discipline, or rather on the verge of disorder.

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FREEDOM AND FLEXIBILITY IS ONE OF GOOGLE’S MOTTOS, AND IT HAS PREVALENCE OVER THE COMPANY’S STRATEGY

In fact, what matters in the IT business is performance. Performance metrics are often very strict, especially when it comes to coding. However, many artists have said that IT people are the most similar to artists. The inspiration for a revolutionary solution that will surpass the competition can come suddenly, and found out of the workplace. Once the performance metrics are executed, we conclude

that the solution is excellent. Thinking outside the box is becoming a mantra of modern business, and it is especially felt in creative business, such as the IT, as depicted in the comedy “The Internship” (2013).

There are some successful tactics.

One of them is big companies having game rooms. Once a developer becomes fed up with the work, they can go to a game room, have fun or just plump themselves down on lazy bags, play pool or pinball machines or whatever the particular game room has. This allows developers to reset and continue working more creatively, without having to constantly stare at the computer. This also builds security and self-confidence within the group.

The concept of psychological safety

was common to all successful groups at Google. That is, in each group each participant is free to contribute equally (in whatever way works the best for the team) and each individual is sensitive to others’ feelings. Freedom and flexibility is one of Google’s mottos, and it has prevalence over the company’s

THE CONCEPT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFETY WAS COMMON TO ALL SUCCESSFUL GROUPS AT GOOGLE

strategy. It is, in fact, the company's strategy. Job applications to work at Google are said to number 2.5 million a year. The company believes that a positive environment will attract talent and instil loyalty – an approach that is born of the competitive Silicon Valley setting of its headquarters. Also, reorganizations are avoided as 50% of employees never understand why reorganization is necessary. Passion projects are very important; not everything has to be a pre-set paid goal and task. Google allows its employees to spend 20% of their time working together on passion projects that they believe would benefit Google. The development of Google News and Gmail are two examples of successful projects that emerged from that 20%.

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TECHNOLOGY

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by Žikica Milošević

SILICON VALLEY The Technology Capital of the World

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veryone has probably heard of the term "Silicon Valley", but not everyone can show it on the map. Silicon Valley is located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, in northern California, the most cosmopolitan part of the Golden State.

Many people also don't know that San Jose is the 10th biggest city in America, and the third wealthiest city in the world (per capita), after Zurich and Oslo.

The word “silicon” in “Silicon Valley” comes from the fact that a large number of innovators have based their production of semiconductors and silicon from which transistors and integrated circuits are made in the valley. Today,

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the valley is home to over 30 companies that have made the Fortune 1000 list. There are also thousands of startup companies here, which cannot imagine a better place to flourish in. As

SILICON VALLEY STILL REMAINS THE GOAL OF EVERY IT PROFESSIONAL AND THE PLACE THAT WILL DETERMINE OUR LIVES IN THE YEARS TO COME

much as a third of the investment capital in the entire United States is concentrated in Silicon Valley. Integrated circuits, microprocessors and microcomputers (the forerunner of today’s PC) all originate from there.

This is not a coincidence since the first radio station with a regular programme in the United States was founded in San Jose in 1909. In 1939, a business practice called welfare capitalism emerged, where pensions, social welfare and other benefits were consolidated, and the idea of social solidarity was cemented. Ever since, these practices have been a must in high-tech companies, which are becoming higher and more tech as

time passes. Stanford University Park played a major role in this. Hewlett-Packard was one of the first residents in the park, while their early tenants also included Eastman Kodak, General Electric and Lockheed.

It became clear that America would become the world's major power because of science and technology, and that San Jose would become the centre of the world, with similar clusters worldwide being named after it.

Today, it is difficult to count the number of companies in Silicon Valley that are known across the globe and that dictate the technological pace. These include Adobe, Apple, Cisco, Facebook, Intel, Netflix, Nvidia, Oracle, PayPal, Twit-

ter, Google... Aherton, a town in Silicon Valley, is the most expensive place to live in in the entire US. While the most expensive cars line up parking lots in the valley and hundreds of thousands

of IT workers dictate our present and future day and night, Silicon Valley still remains the goal of every IT professional and the place that will determine our lives in the years to come.

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INDEPENDENCE More than a Declaration CLICK TO SEE THIS ON WEB

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t is a well-known fact that 4th July is the biggest American holiday. On that day, in 1776, a group of politicians and fighters for independence from Great Britain made the fateful decision not to seek a solution within the system, but to find their own way that resulted in the Declaration of Independence. But, in American culture, independence is more than just a declaration.

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FROM THE FOUNDING FATHERS UNTIL TODAY In Philadelphia, the Founding Fathers abandoned the tradition symbolized by their previous colonial history. If they had not done that, the US would today resemble Canada. As a result, the contemporary US promotes independent tradition that glorifies individuality over collective, and initiative over anticipation. In short, the declaration was the first step towards recognizing that both the state, which was based on the 13 colonies of New England, and every one of its citizens would always be ready to take matters into their own hands, namely to defend themselves, to have the right to medical treatment and education, to find happiness on the distant horizons of unchartered areas in the West or the South, to start a company, to invent something new... Thanks to this spirit, throughout its history, the country has been attracting millions of people who were ready to pursue happiness and achieve the American dream. That is actually how the American dream was created; with the idea that society will allow initiative, and that, if injustice occurs, society has to change.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP Another result of this was the birth of the highest form of entrepreneurship, although such entrepreneurship had existed in Britain before the independence and in parallel, in other Commonwealth countries that remained loyal to the Motherland. Max Weber connected Protestant ethics with the spirit of capitalism and the entrepreneurial spirit, and his book is a kind of a Bible for sociologists and finance ministers. Even the president of Serbia quoted it from time to time when he was prime minister. Although we see the same thing happening in other Protestant coun-

IN THE US, VENTURE CAPITAL IS ALWAYS READY TO FINANCE NEW BUSINESS IDEAS, MORE THAN ANYWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD tries, the United States still perpetuates the spirit of the Declaration of Independence, namely that one should sever their ties with anyone who is an oppressor or slows down their development. This is the reason why there is a huge number of startups in America, because American people, just like their ancestors - the Founding Fathers, can leave companies they work for, declare "company independence" if you will, and create an independent enterprise.

In the US, venture capital is al-

ways ready to finance new business ideas, more than anywhere else in the world. Indeed, from Silicon Valley to the advent of Hollywood and Off-Broadway and Off-off-Broadway, indie-rock labels that have become major players like Geffen, outsiders that have become a symbol of modern TV production like Netflix, or a bunch of students that have become leaders in innovation, like Google or Facebook, everywhere we see "declarations of independence", i.e. readiness to move on.

BACKLASH You've probably seen countless movies where if a person suffers injustice, they stand against it and after a prolonged fight, their win and thus change society for better. This, in real life, results in certain inertia of the system to change itself, so the citizens have to "push" it a little bit. Sometimes, the rest of the world finds it hard to understand the incomprehensible desire for solitude ("privacy", if you will), living in remote locations, carrying weapons and exercising personal freedoms in medical treatment, but that's all perfectly clear to the Americans. That’s a result of their spirit of independence and non-reliance on the other. There have been cases when citizens even voted against having public transport, fearing that 'collectivism' will affect the spirit of entrepreneurship. In a way, America has always rested on "the consensus of all citizens who each fight for the best individually", thus improving 'the collective'. This is their recipe for being „the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave“.

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THE CONTEMPORARY US PROMOTES INDEPENDENT TRADITION THAT GLORIFIES INDIVIDUALITY OVER COLLECTIVE, AND INITIATIVE OVER ANTICIPATION 47 AMERICA 2020

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CULTURE

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by Žikica Milošević

AMERICAN ART REVOLUTION Fresh and optimistic, revolutionary and limitless

CLICK TO SEE THIS ON WEB

or many years, European artists dictated styles in art and literature, and for a long time, Europe was the centre of the art world. Then, after the Second World War, Europe came out of everything tired, ruined and without the will to create - except for creating socialist realism, repetitive direction or experimental socialist sculpture. On the other hand, America came out optimistic, victorious, strong and willing to climb the throne in everything, including art.

And that's exactly what happened.

The tired and devastated world was ready for everything American - from Coca-Cola and jukebox to rock and roll, jazz, cars and pop music. But Americans

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were not satisfied with turning classic counter stores into supermarkets. They also wanted high art. Which is what they did – they took it, they hijacked it.

ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM Abstract expressionism was one of the first things that demonstrated a revolutionary different spirit, and

INSTAGRAM IS FULL OF ROTHKO-LIKE AND ROTHKO-INSPIRED PHOTOS AND HOMAGES

leaning on the tendencies of the Russian avant-garde and German expressionism which were rudely interrupted by Nazism and Stalinism and their zealot attitudes towards art. One of the first abstract expressionists was Marcus Rothkowich, or in America, known as Mark Rothko. A Jew from Lithuania, influenced by Malevich and the Russian avant-garde, Rothko began to paint large canvases in only few colours, with horizontal lines of great thickness. He literally divided the canvas into several fields and painted them in a non-uniform way. His influence on the design of logos and photography in the 20th and 21st century was huge. Just think how many times we’ve heard:” Well, this is a real Rothko” when someone takes

a photo of a wheat field and the sky, or the ocean and the sky. Instagram is full of Rothko-like and Rothko-inspired photos and homages. It is also worth mentioning that Rothko considered his paintings to be a reflection of the deepest human feelings, completely stripped to the bone.

Another revolutionary was called Jackson Pollock. He's often, too often, also called "Jason Pollock," but, hey, people, it's not his fault he has "two last names" and no "first names." You have probably listened to Taylor Swift’s songs or you are in love with Blake Lively or you watch movies with Harrison Ford but you never get their names wrong, even though theirs are not first names, but rather 6 last names.

Back to Pollock! It is highly likely that your mother saw one of his canvasses and said:” Well, I could squeeze colour from a tube onto a canvas like this and also call it art”, but Pollock was the first to do it in a masterful way. Sometimes he squeezed the paint onto the canvas, sometimes he threw it, sometimes he used "action painting" to paint with his whole body.

No-one was left indifferent. Some people praised him and some called him "Jack The Dripper." They say that he was inspired by the drops of paint that accidentally dripped on the floor while he was working on a mural. He was of the opinion that the "picture" on the floor, created by those drops, turned out better than the mural. “Those pictures live their lives,” he said. He started painting them on the floor, letting them dry. They called him a charlatan and the greatest painter in America, at the same time.

NEO-DADAISM AND RAUSCHENBERG Robert Rauschenberg was the poster boy for Neo-Dadaism. He was quoted as saying that Rothko’s art came as “a revelation” to him”, but that he quickly grew tired of Rothko’s and Pollock’s lack of figuration. Web-art-encyclopedias like Artsy.net have the following to say about Neo-Dadaism: “A

berg is well known for his "combines" of the 1950s, in which non-traditional materials and objects were employed in various combinations. Rauschenberg was both a painter and a sculptor, and the combines are a combination of the two, but he also worked with photography, printmaking, papermaking and performance.” He even incorporated JFK into his combines. Many bar owners tend to buy cheap imitation of his artwork as wall decoration, while many interior decoration shops sell them. Rauschenberg was the one who anticipated pop-art and instigated a transition that heavily affected the future world of design.

THE POP-ART OF ROY LICHTENSTEIN PERHAPS HAD MORE PRINTS THAN WARHOL’S WORK BECAUSE LICHTENSTEIN’S PAINTINGS WERE LIKE COMIC BOOK FRAMES

POP-ART It goes without saying that we have to mention Andy Warhol, a man whom everybody has heard of. Warhol was the most famous Ruthenian in the world, an artist who used copies of photographs of Marilyn Monroe for his art. He claimed that everybody would get their 15 minutes of fame eventually, i.e. be the main star of a TV channel and famous for a short while. Warhol also said that poetry was hidden in ordinary things and he was also a pioneer of multimedia. The film Men in Black 3 made him out to be a joke, but the world thinks differently. The popart of Roy Lichtenstein perhaps had more prints than Warhol’s work because Lichtenstein’s paintings were like comic book frames. Most framed posters you see around are the reproductions of Lichtenstein’s work. Popart shows that everyday life and high art are fused today. And that has been true for 50 years.

style appearing in the United States in the late 1950s that in its methods and concerns recalls Dada, whose ideas were introduced to American artists by the composer John Cage. Rejecting the overblown rhetoric and adamant non-figuration of Abstract Expressionism, which then dominated the American avant-garde, Neo-Dadaists embraced depictions of the real world and strove to integrate art and life through the use of real objects in paintings and sculpture.“ And indeed, Rauschenberg decided to combine expression with an almost collage structure. He called his works "combines", not "collage". “Rauschen-

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RAUSCHENBERG IS WELL KNOWN FOR HIS "COMBINES" OF THE 1950S, IN WHICH NON-TRADITIONAL MATERIALS AND OBJECTS WERE EMPLOYED IN VARIOUS COMBINATIONS 49 AMERICA 2020

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HOW NETFLIX CHANGED THE WAY WE WATCH TV FOREVER The streaming service’s big gamble on original content in 2011 has paid off for its subscribers, at least CLICK TO SEE THIS ON WEB

bout 50 years ago, Warhol said that everyone would have their 15 minutes of fame on TV. Now, we no longer believe in linear television that serves us what it wants - we believe in television in which we choose what we watch. This was brought to us by several TV bigshots, but first and foremost,

by Netflix.

As the name suggests, Netflix came up with its idea on the Internet. At first, the company allowed its content to be fairly easily shared online until we were all “hooked” on 'Dexter' and the team in 2008. The rest is history. We, in Serbia, can currently watch Netflix's series "Narcos" and "Narcos: Mexico" which stand

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shoulder to shoulder in terms of quality and viewership to the BBC's series back in the day. Netflix evolved from being the star of the meme „Netflix and Chill“ (a phrase that denotes making out, which is tantamount to „come to my place and we'll listen to records“ back in the old days) to a trendsetter.

Let's look at the numbers first. The

NOW, WE NO LONGER BELIEVE IN LINEAR TELEVISION THAT SERVES US WHAT IT WANTS

company's primary business is its subscription-based streaming service which offers online streaming of a library of films and television programmes, including those produced in-house. As of April 2020, Netflix had over 182 million paid subscriptions worldwide, including 69 million in the United States.

Initially, Netflix was a streaming service available only in North America, but over time, it decided to start producing own programme as well.

And the programme was good. First, there were series. Over time, the series, which were originally seen as actors as the last resort of their acting carriers while waiting to be offered a role in a

blockbuster, became the place where everything was happening, while movies became fun for kids, mostly based on comic book heroes and brimming with CGI effects.

And that's where Netflix was the best, with its original series such as 'House of Cards', 'Orange Is the New Black', 'Narcos', 'Stranger Things', 'The Crown' and 'The Witcher', which all became iconic over time. Netflix turned into "the parallel Hollywood", a sort of "off-Broadway" where anyone who had a good idea could bypass Hollywood and showcase their unusual story told in the sublime language of film, something like an alternative indie-rock-pop music scene. After that, Netflix threw it-

self into movies that “big” Hollywood didn’t want to fund. Subsequently, that became a problem for the classic film industry because Netflix did not adhere to the three-month-window between the launch in cinemas and the launch

NETFLIX INTRODUCED US TO BINGE-WATCHING. WATCHING TV WILL NEVER BE THE SAME, THANKS TO THE INNOVATORS FROM SCOTTS VALLEY

on streaming platforms, provoking the anger of Spielberg himself.

Netflix's CPO Neil Hunt points out that the Internet allows users the freedom to watch shows at their own pace, so an episode does not need cliffhangers. Netflix has allowed content creators to deviate from traditional formats that force 30-minute or 60-minute time slots once a week - this flexibility also allows Netflix to nurture a show until it finds its audience, unlike traditional networks which will quickly cancel a show if it is unable to maintain steady ratings. Netflix introduced us to binge-watching. Watching TV will never be the same, thanks to the innovators from Scotts Valley.

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AMERICAN CUISINE

Unmistakably recognizable by Žikica Milošević

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s there anybody who doesn't know anything about American cuisine? Remember Tom the cat (as in Tom & Jerry) who steals a fresh apple pie from the window? Remember hamburgers, milkshakes, Thanksgiving turkey and fat pancakes that you cannot roll up?

Bill Bryson says that, back in the day, when English colonists stepped onto the new continent, they were sad by not being able to grow the typical English plants, noting that many other plants, which they did not know what to do with, grew everywhere and

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that there were lobsters wherever they turned. Historical records say the following:” When the colonists came to the colonies, they farmed animals for clothing and meat in a similar fashion to what they had done in Europe. They had cuisine similar to their previous Dutch, Swedish, French and British cuisines. The American colonial diet varied depending on the region settled. The commonly hunted game included deer, bear, bison, and wild turkey.“ Subsequently, the colonists got used to the „weird“ plants and their ethnic cuisines produced all sorts of eclectic food combinations.

HAMBURGER Take hamburger, for example. It is named after the city of Hamburg in Germany where it was customary to put baked pork in a bun. Another theory says that pieces of meat, similar to today's hamburgers, were served in round buns. But in its abbreviated form, the burger is the quintessential Americal symbol that contains no references to the town from which colonists, who perfected the recipe, came.

APPLE PIE Apple pie was brought to the colonies by the English, the Dutch, and the Swedes during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, this is a prominent symbol of Americana, if not a cultural symbol.

Remember that apple pie in a ribbed dish that Tom the cat steals from the window? Apple pie is the unofficial symbol of the United States of America. Period.

TEXAS BARBECUE AND KENTUCKY CHICKEN It's hard to imagine Texans, or Serbs and Argentines for that matter, without a barbecue. This is a top social event for Texans, and it is difficult, even unheard of, to be a vegetarian in the cowboy state unless you’re a hipster from Austin. There is another devilishly tasty delicacy called chicken wings, which is the most popular among Southerners and often associated with African-Americans. It is no wonder that the world's largest chain of fried chicken comes from Kentucky, which is one of the poorest states in the US. But they sure know how to eat just like wealthier Texans. Ribs also

definitely belong to this group. Probably half of the American films ever made mentioned one of these three delicacies.

AMERICAN CUISINE IS A PART OF OUR COLLECTIVE UNCONSCIOUS, BUT ALSO OUR EVERYDAY LIFE CHICAGO SINS Chicago has committed many sins against the Italian cuisine, say Italians from Italy. For example, their renderings of Italian dishes are sacrilege for most Italian gourmands. Fat pizza, that is, thick-crusted pizza the Chicago way, is everything that the Italians try to avoid when making pizza. The indigenous Italian pizza has the thinnest possible crust. But we are talking about the Italians from Chicago. Oh, let’s not for-

get one more sin that goes by the name of spaghetti with meatballs.

AND THE LIST GOES ON...

Last but not least, we should mention the hot dog and the Thanksgiving turkey. Turkey is prepared on Thanksgiving, which marks the event from the 17th century when the Native Americans helped the Pilgrims to survive the winter by sharing with them their food.

As turkey is the main dish on Thanksgiving, this day is also jokingly called „The Turkey Day“ with millions of poor turkeys being sacrificed each year for dinner. Ducks are used as alternatives in some households.

American cuisine, as abundant as America itself, is a mix of dishes brought to the country by immigrants, even the newest ones, which make up the country's "ethnic" cuisine. Everything in the typical American cuisine is delicious, but you have to be careful not to overeat. American cuisine is a part of our collective unconscious, but also of our everyday life as it gained international popularity a long time ago.

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IT'S HARD TO IMAGINE TEXANS, OR SERBS AND ARGENTINES FOR THAT MATTER, WITHOUT A BARBECUE 53 AMERICA 2020

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SAN FRANCISCO

The Most European, the Maximum Magic!

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was flipping through an American tourist magazine once which described Lisbon to American read-ers. The description went something like this: „Americans will find Lisbon familiar because it unmis-takably resembles San Francisco, with its trams and hills overlooking the sea. If you want to describe San Francisco, one of the few hubs of American

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tourism, we can apply the reverse description - of all the American cities, San Francisco will look irresistibly familiar to you with its hills and trams and sea, because it resembles Lisbon.�

COLLECTIVE UNCONSCIOUS San Francisco resembles other cities too, other than Lisbon which gained iconic status after Wim Wenders made that movie. It resembles the city you

HERE, YOU CAN SEE KEANU REEVES FALLING IN LOVE WITH A DITZY AND SAD CHARLIZE THERON ONE DAY IN NO-VEMBER

have been dreaming about. It looks exquisitely European with its Victorian houses, and you have seen it as a backdrop in hundreds of films. You simply cannot resist using it in movies because it is so photogenic with its Chinatown and old slow trams that you can hop on as they are moving. Here, you can see Keanu Reeves falling in love with a ditzy and sad Charlize Theron one day in November.

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You chase bad guys in your car up and down the San Francisco hills or go down the serpentine-like streets from the hills towards the sea. You can cause trouble with Jackie Chan in Chinatown or stop by to have a local speciality. Or you can be seduced by the three sisters from the Charms TV series who will also defend you against demons. There are too many mental images from the collective uncon-scious that make San Francisco look so familiar and feel like home to us.

THERE ARE TOO MANY MENTAL IMAGES FROM THE COLLECTIVE UNCONSCIOUS THAT MAKE SAN FRANCISCO LOOK SO FAMILIAR AND FEEL LIKE HOME TO US

ATTRACTIONS Naturally, let's start with the most visible one - the Golden Gate Bridge.

Frommer's travel guide de-scribes the Golden Gate Bridge as "possibly the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world." It was deliberately painted orange to in-

crease its visibility in the fog, as a contrast against the blue sky and the blue sea, say the engineers. Psychologists claim that orange is the happiest colour and that in a country where you are expected to be happy and in a city

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where the fog often makes you miserable, there is nothing better to prevent people attempting suicide by jumping from the bridge than painting it orange, a colour that brings nothing but joy. Of course, we should not forget Alcatraz. You know all about it and you also know that the ocean surrounding it contains dark secrets. Al Capone and the like are no longer inmates here, but there will always be visitors who come to Alcatraz to feel the spirit of this infamous prison.

Today, Alcatraz is a public museum and one of San Francisco's major tourist attractions, attracting some 1.5 million visitors annually. Now operated by the National Park Service's Golden Gate National Recreation Area, the timeworn former prison is being restored and maintained. There is also Fisher-man's Wharf, with its docks and

restaurants. You can even eat at Bubba Gump Shrimps, made famous by the movie Forrest Gump, although Forrest Gump and his best friend of similar IQ have never founded this brand in reality. But this is America, where dream precedes reality.

THE SPIRIT San Francisco is all about free spirit.

It was the first town to have gay neighbourhoods when being gay was dangerous or hidden from the public. The proximity to Silicon Valley and the city's European demeanour, as well as the multiculturalism of California, have transformed San Francisco into the city of youth and good fun. There is plenty of money here too. As of 2020, San Francisco has the highest salaries, disposable income, and median home prices in the world at $1.7 million. As of 2016,

THE CITY OF ST FRANCIS IS ALSO ONE OF THE MOST VISITED CITIES IN AMERICA AND EVERYBODY'S DESIRED DESTI-NATION the San Francisco metropolitan area had the highest GDP per capita, labour productivity, and household in-come levels in the OECD. As of 2019, it is the highest-rated American city on world liveability rank-ings. And we are talking about the list on which the Americans always ranked poorly, unlike the Ca-nadians, Australians, Japanese, Scan-

dinavians or Viennese. When the sea fog falls on the city, it gives it a special eerie tone, which makes San Francisco unique in these southern latitudes. After the war, the confluence of returning servicemen, significant immigration, liberalizing attitudes, along with the rise of the "hippie" counterculture, the Sexual Revolution, the Peace Movement growing from opposi-tion to United States involvement in the Vietnam War, and other factors led to the Summer of Love and the gay rights movement, cementing San Francisco as a centre of liberal activism in the United States.

San Francisco is often mentioned in hippie songs and it frequently appears in our dreams and visions. The City of St Francis is also one of the most visited cities in America and everybody's desired desti-nation.

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longings and valuables in it are damaged due to fire, bad weather, spillage from installations or burglary, AMS Osiguranje will reimburse you for the damages as soon as possible, in line with the terms and conditions of your insurance policy.

ADVICE

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an additional 10-per-cent-discount on the entire insurance premium.

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