"We are ready, unlike Macedonia, to accommodate migrants temporarily, especially in the winter. We can take from 3,000 to 6,000, maybe more," Nikolic said at a briefing after a trilateral meeting with European Council and Macedonian leaders in Brussels.
Nikolic underscored that the EU exhibits "good will" in assisting Belgrade to accommodate more migrants, but noted that ministerial-level meetings would work out the concrete financial terms.
Transit countries along the Balkan route, including Serbia and Macedonia, have instituted a rule in mid-November allowing passage only to Afghan, Iraqi and Syrian nationals fleeing war. Other third-party nationals are declared economic migrants and declined entry.
Nikolic cited the figure of 5,500 people who cross the Serbian border on a daily basis en route to Western Europe.
