Increased U.S. and European engagement in the Western Balkans will be critical to countering an increasingly assertive Russian in the region, Republican Arizona Senator John McCain told VOA Wednesday.

McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, made the comments shortly after returning from a tour of the region, which included a stop in Montenegro, whose U.S.-backed accession to NATO has been vigorously opposed by Russia.

US Senator John McCain will arrive in Belgrade for a meeting with Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic.

Vucic announced this during a news conference on Sunday, and said he and McCain will speak "about the position of Serbia and Kosovo."

Vucic said he "assumed" that "relationship toward Serbia, that is, about what is part of Serbia's foreign policy orientation" would also be discussed.

U.S. Senator and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services, John McCain is expected to visit Kosovo on 13 April, sources told Klan Kosova. It is not yet known who the U.S. Senator will meet during his visit but some of the topics expected to be discussed will include the security situation in Kosovo as well as the election of Aleksandar Vucic to the post of Serbian president.

John McCain, United States Senator and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services, talked to European Western Balkans about the importance of the accession of Montenegro and the Russian influence in the region. Asked about his opinion about the importance of the accession of Montenegro into NATO despite its small size and an army of less than 2000 soldiers, senator McCain talked about his meeting with General Scapariotti, the Head of the United States European Command on Thursday.