Serbia's Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic received outgoing Apostolic Nuncio Orlando Antonini on Tuesday, and thanked him for his personal contribution to improving relations between Serbia and the Vatican.

This is also reflected in a better understanding between the Roman Catholic Church and the Serbian Orthodox Church, the Serbian government's media relations office said in a release.

The Serbian prime minister extended special thanks to Nuncio Antonio for the Holy See's principled position concerning the non-recognition of the independence of Kosovo that had been unilaterally declared by ethnic Albanians.

Apostolic Nuncio Antonini commended the Serbian prime minister's contribution to reconciliation and improvement in relations between the Western Balkan countries.

He voiced the hope that Serbia would open the first negotiation chapters in EU entry talks by the end of the year.

Antonini underlined that during his six-year term of office in Serbia, he had enjoyed full support and understanding from the Serbian government and the Serbian Orthodox Church, reads the release.