US Ambassador Christopher Hill told the Nova.rs portal that his picture with Ivan Bosnjak whose company has filed a number of SLAPP suits against journalists is not a sign of support.

Asked to comment a photograph posted on social media with Bosnjak, the ambassador said that the only thing they discussed was grape farming. Bosnjak is a co-owner of the Millennium Team company which is reported to have been awarded a number of lucrative deals by the Serbian authorities and has sued media outlets and journalists alleging inaccuracies in their reporting.

Nova.rs asked the ambassador about the photograph of President Aleksandar Vucic with Russian Ambassador Alexander Bocan-Harchenko which his wife liked on Instagram. Hill said that his wife is not very careful about following and liking things on Instagram adding that she thought the picture at the Russian House in Belgrade was probably a school. There is definitely no political stand there, he said. According to him, Russia has nothing to offer anyone.

Hill said that people often want to get their picture taken with him but that he didn’t realize how many people have pictures with him. I was introduced to that man but a picture with me should not be taken as support, he said.

Hill said that he was clear in his earlier comments about SLAPP suits but that he does not know anything about Millennium Team. He recalled that he and the embassy staff invested effort to counter the practice. Hill said he thinks that the company has links to some US companies but that he is not involved in any business dealings.