North Macedonia and Serbia plan construction of high-speed railway

Serbia and North Macedonia have signed a memorandum of cooperation for the construction of a high-speed railway between Serbian southern city of Nis and North Macedonia’s capital.

The first phase of the 50km rail project will focus on the Skopje-Nis-Belgrade section (Photo: AdobeStock)

The document was signed by the Government of the Republic of Serbia and the Minister of Transport and Communications of North Macedonia, Blagoj Bochvarsi, and the Serbian Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure, Goran Vesić, in the presence of prime ministers Dimitar Kovachevski and Ana Brnabić, reported Media Information Agency (MIA).

The planned railway line, part of the Corridor X project that will connect Athens-Thessaloniki-Skopje-Nis-Belgrade-Zagreb-Ljubljana-Salzburg, is said to enhance transportation infrastructure as well as promote economic collaboration between participating countries, said North Macedonia’s PM Dimitar Kovacevski.

The first phase of the 50km rail project will focus on the Skopje-Nis-Belgrade section, with an additional leg connecting Skopje to Skopje International Airport.

It is reported that both governments will form a working group to outline an action plan for the project in the coming weeks.

The European Union has been approached by both countries for funding to support the rail project, said the Serbian government in a separate statement.