SERBIA

JEREMIC: ESTONIA SUPPORTS SERBIA'S EU INTEGRATION

TALINN, March 9 (Tanjug) - Estonia will continue to support Serbia's endeavors for integration in the European Union, Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic told Tanjug Tuesday after meeting Estonian top officials.
There is also full agreement between Belgrade and Talinn regarding EU integration of the entire Western Balkans, Jeremic said. Political differences in Western Balkans must not hinder the strategic commitment of the region's countries to EU integration, it was noted during the talks. Jeremic said he was very satisfied with the talks, which focused on fostering bilateral cooperation. Estonian companies are interested in investing in the energy and hi-tech sectors in Serbia, he said. The talks also focused on cooperation in culture, science, technology and education, he said.
Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves, Prime Minister Andrus Ansip and Foreign Minister Urmas Paet all expressed their support to Serbia's EU integration and their hope that the ratification of the Stabilization and Association Agreement might start soon.
Ilves said that implementation of the Interim Trade Agreement, visa liberalization and Serbia's application for EU membership show that both Serbia and the EU are ready to take the next steps. He described bilateral relations as close and said Serbia is Estonia's leading trade partner in Western Balkans, a statement issued by his office says.

ANSIP: TALLINN SUPPORTS FURTHER ENLARGEMENT OF EU

TALLINN, March 9 (Tanjug) - Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip said Tuesday, during the meeting with Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic in Tallinn, that his country actively supports the process of further enlargement of the European Union (EU). He also said that Estonia is ready to share its experiences from the process of EU accession with Serbia, the Estonian radio and television has reported. Ansip and Jeremic also discussed the cooperation of the two countries, assessing that there are good prospects for the improvement. According to Ansip, Estonia is especially interested for the cooperation in the field of information technologies, education and energy. During his first, one-day visit to Estonia, Jeremic will also meet with President of Estonia Toomas Hendrik Ilves and the country's Foreign Minister Urmas Paet.

TADIC EXPRESSES CONDOLENCES TO TURKISH PRESIDENT

BELGRADE, March 10 (Tanjug) - Serbian President Boris Tadic has sent a telegram of condolences to his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul on the occasion of the devastating earthquake which struck the country two days ago and caused numerous casualties, the Serbian president's press service released in a statement on Wednesday.
"The citizens of Serbia sympathize with the people of Turkey for the victims and the material damage caused by the earthquake," the telegram of condolences states. At least 57 people were killed and around 100 were hurt in the strong earthquake measuring 6 on the Richter scale, which hit eastern Turkey early Monday.

NEW AMBASSADORS OF SERBIA TO BAGLADESH, MALAWI AND ECUADOR

BELGRADE, March 10 (Tanjug) - The decrees of Serbian President Boris Tadic on the appointments of new Serbian ambassadors to Bangladesh, Malawi and Ecuador were published in the latest issue of the Official Gazette.
Jovan Mirilovic was appointed to the post of Serbian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Bangladesh, on a non-residential basis, with the seat in New Delhi.
Goran Vujicic was appointed to the duty of Serbian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Malawi, with the seat in Pretoria.
Goran Mesic was revoked from the position of Serbian ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Republic of Ecuador, on a non-residential basis, with a seat in Lima. Ljubomir Milic was appointed to the post of Serbian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Ecuador, with a seat in Brasilia.

DJELIC: SERBIA SHOULD KEEP ITS YOUTH

NOVI PAZAR, March 9 (Tanjug) - Novi Pazar is a city of youth and a way should be found that the students who graduated stay in their city and help the development of the economy, Serbian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and Technological Development Bozidar Djelic said on Tuesday.
Serbia should not allow that young people, for any reason, leave Serbia, Djelic said in Novi Pazar, a city in Southeastern Serbia, where he donated a telescope to a primary school and the city's Astronomical Society. He first talked with Novi Pazar Mayor Meho Mahmutovic, and then visited the State University, where he talked with Rector Cemal Dolicanin.
After the meeting with Mahmutovic, Djelic said that the Road Directorate of Serbia allocated RSD 50 million for paving of Novi Pazar streets, and added that, out of EUR 25 million received from the European Union, the city will get a share for building of universal infrastructure.

DULIC: HALF OF SERBIA DOES NOT HAVE ORGANIZED WASTE MANAGEMENT

BELGRADE, March 9 (Tanjug) - The average coverage of municipal territories with local community infrastructure in Serbia amounts to around 50 percent, which means that a half of the country does not have an organized waste management, Serbian Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning Oliver Dulic said Tuesday.
Dulic evaluated that "this is a very unsatisfactory" situation, and pointed out that a strategy for the waste management, which is long-awaited, will be on the agenda of the Serbian government in a few days. The strategy will "definitely define all the obligations of the state and the local self-governments in order to fight this huge problem," Dulic said at the building of the Serbian government. He pointed out that through the campaign 'Let's Clean up Serbia', apart from all the achieved results regarding physical removal of wild garbage dumps in half of the cases, a very significant data was received on the situation on the field.
"In many municipalities the coverage of their territory with the community infrastructure is very bad," Dulic underscored, and added that in Serbia as a whole the average of such coverage in terms of waste management amounts to around 50 percent. In the years to come, we will attack the problem, and try to solve it, the minister underscored.

DJUKANOVIC ON SERBIA'S WISH TO DISCREDIT MONTENEGRO

PODGORICA, March 10 (Tanjug) - By accusing the country of not cooperating in the fight against organized crime, Serbia wants to discredit Montenegro and show that it does not have a legal capacity of an independent country, as well as that its further process of independence should be stopped, Montenegrin Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic evaluated late Tuesday.
In a broadcast of the Radio Television of Montenegro Djukanovic said that this intention is clearly shown in Serbia's relation towards Montenegro when it comes to the police action Balkan Warrior. He pointed out that Serbia and Montenegro do not have different stands on the issue of crime, but said that "there are differences between the two countries when it comes to goals they want to achieve by raising the issue of organized crime."
Djukanovic stressed that it should not be forgotten that those who are suspected of organizing narcotics smuggling are the citizens of Serbia, those who are arrested for the smuggling are caught in Belgrade and Kragujevac, and the money they legalized was legalized in Serbia, and very small part of it was legalized in Montenegro. He confirmed that there are clues that some of the suspects were hiding in Montenegro for a short period of time, but he underscored that this is not the reason for calling Montenegro a criminal state.

SABO OFFERS VUKOVAR AS VENUE FOR TADIC, JOSIPOVIC MEETING

ZAGREB, March 9 (Tanjug) - The Mayor of Vukovar Zeljko Sabo offered Tuesday that city as the venue for a first meeting between Serbian and Croatian Presidents Boris Tadic and Ivo Josipovic.
A meeting of the two presidents in Vukovar would send to the world a message that Croatia and Serbia are ready to foster good neighborly relations, he said. According to media reports, Sabo made a suggestion to that end to Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic during a recent European Union conference in Budapest on drafting a strategy for the Danube basin.




LETERME: NUMBER OF ASYLUM REQUESTS DROPS SIGNIFICANTLY

PRISTINA, March 9 (Tanjug) - Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme said in Pristina on Tuesday that hardly any Serbian and Macedonian citizens requested political asylum in Belgium in the past few days.
The number of political asylum seekers in Belgium dropped significantly after our meeting with Serbian Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic last Friday and the meeting with Macedonian leaders in Skopje on Monday, Leterme said at a press conference following his meeting with interim Kosovo Prime Minister Hasim Taci. Leterme said he does not have the exact figures, but that there have only been one or two asylum requests from Serbian and Macedonian citizens in the last few days, and reminded that two weeks ago Belgium was receiving hundreds of requests every day.
Comparing that period with the last few days proves our efforts have been positive and productive. I think the problem was presented well and with good cooperation from Cvetkovic and Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, the Belgian prime minister stressed. He said that Macedonian and Serbian citizens' chances of getting political asylum in Belgium are low to non-existent. There is no point in traveling to Brussels to seek political asylum. We are determined to repatriate these people as fast as possible, Letterme said.

DONATION OF JAPANESE GOVT FOR IMPROVING ECOLOGY IN SERBIA

BELGRADE, March 9 (Tanjug) - An Agreement was signed Tuesday in the Government of Serbia on the EUR 138,000 worth donation of the Japanese government intended for two new projects in the field of environmental protection in Serbia, in the form of non-repayable aid for the Municipalities of Bela Palanka and Vrnjacka Banja.
The agreement was signed by Charge d' Affairs of the Japanese Embassy in Serbia Teruhiko Shinada and Directors of Public Companies from Bela Palanka and Vrnjacka Banja, Miomir Krstic and Goran Siljic respectively, with the presence of Serbian Minister for Environment and Spatial Planning Oliver Dulic.
Shinada specified that the donation for Bela Palanka totals EUR 62,900, in the form of equipment - cleaning machines, 100 containers and 30 special containers for recycling, whereas Vrnjacka Banja will get a compression garbage truck worth EUR 68,000. He stressed that Japan supports the campaign of the Serbian Ministry for Environment dubbed 'Let's Clean up Serbia', and added that he thinks that the donations correspond to the goals of the campaign. Shinada pointed out that Japan has given around EUR 200 million of economic aid to Serbia so far, and underlined that Serbia and Japan are partners which share the same ideas in the field of environmental protection.

SERBIA - KOPAONIK BUSINESS FORUM

SERBIA NEEDS GDP GROWTH OF OVER 2 PERCENT TO EXIT CRISIS

KOPAONIK, March 9 (Tanjug) - Serbia's Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic stated Tuesday that the country cannot get out of the economic crisis it is in without a GDP growth of over 2 percent, adding that the key challenges in 2010 will be to stop the increase in unemployment, revive domestic demand and achieve macroeconomic stability.
"If we do not achieve a growth higher than 2 percent, this year will be similar to the year of the crisis and we will have no sense of improvement," said Cvetkovic, noting that the country needs a continuous growth of 5 to 6 percent annually for it to move forward. Speaking at the 2010 Kopaonik Business Forum, Cvetkovic said that there is no reliable data that would suggest with certainty that Serbia has come out of the crisis, but that there are a number of indicators for that, like the 31 percent increase in export in the first two months of 2010, which inspires optimism.
According to Cvetkovic, stimulating export oriented sectors of the economy, attracting strategic investors and improving Serbia's rating are also key to the country's economic recovery. The government goals in 2010 will be to strengthen economic activity, maintain stability of the Serbian dinar, reduce public spending, prevent an increase in poverty, continue the public sector reform, work on harmonization with European standards and fight crime and corruption. Cvetkovic pointed out that the 3.7 percent growth in industrial production in January, the said high increase in export and the 1.5 percent growth of the composit index also in January all point to positive trends since the start of 2010 and signal a growth of GDP. The negative indicators, according to Cvetkovic, are the fact that budget revenue was lower than what had been planned for the first two months of this year and the continued drop in domestic demand over the same period.
Cvetkovic stressed that the government has no trouble formulating the economic policy, but that it has problems coping with conflicting interests that appear as part of that model, and he asked for assistance from companies and economic experts in dealing with those. As an example, Cvetkovic stated the government's intention to raise demand while reducing public spending, which is the prime source of demand. As another example of such conflicts, Cvetkovic described the necessity to improve the people's living standard and increase salaries while maintaining a restrictive budget.

STATE AND COMPANIES READY TO INVEST OVER RSD 160 BILLION

KOPAONIK, March 9 (Tanjug) - Serbian Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic said on Tuesday that the state and public companies are ready to invest over RSD 160 billion (1 euro = 100 dinars) by the end of the year, and announced the fiscal stimulus of RSD 4 billion and encouragement of the construction and purchasing of new flats.
In his opening speech at the three-day Business Forum on Mt. Kopaonik, Cvetkovic said that the government will also work on the boosting of export demand by financially supporting the realization of export deals, and added that institutional support will also be given in providing the country with new markets.
Speaking about the macroeconomic situation, the prime minister said that in the first two months of 2010, exports was by RSD 8.3 billion, or 8.5 percent, lower than originally planned. If we fail to ensure a two-percent economic growth, this year will be similar to 2009, the year of crisis, and we will not feel any improvement, Cvetkovic assessed and reminded that if Serbia wants to achieve results and move on, it has to ensure a continuous growth of five to six percent.

DINKIC:GROWTH BASED ON EXPORT AND FOREIGN INVESTMENTS

KOPAONIK, March 9 (Tanjug) - Serbian Minister of Economy and Regional Development Mladjan Dinkic said Tuesday that Serbia should launch models of economic growth based on export and attracting of foreign investors.
Dinkic said at the Business Forum Kopaonik that Serbia needs investments such as FIAT in Kragujevac, and pointed out that the effects of such an investment are long-term, stating that the share of export in the gross domestic product (GDP) of Serbia amounts to 10 percent, whereas in the EU it totals over 50 percent. The situation in Belgrade is not so dramatic as in other parts of Serbia, Dinkic stressed, and added that high unemployment and law purchasing power are the current challenges for the government. He reiterated that the unfreezing of salaries in September 2010 is necessary, but added that Serbia should increase the purchasing power of citizens in the meantime. When September ends, wages should be unfrozen, and the formula for the payroll accounts will be discussed with the IMF.
"Our suggestion is that salaries be harmonized with the inflation rate, plus half of the GDP growth. That would be a reasonable formula in relation to the earlier period," Dinkic explained, and added that in 2010 the minimum pensions should be increased as well. "All that would cost around RSD 10 billion, or 0.3 percent of the GDP," he stated, pointing out that, although this seems to be absurd at the moment, all the measures will increase employment and demand, production and export. The minister announced that the Ministry of Economy, in cooperation with the National Bank of Serbia, is preparing the model of subsidized cash loans amounting up to EUR 3,000, in dinars, which would be granted to the middle class mainly, with the repayment period of three years and a year of grace period.

DRAGUTINOVIC: UNFREEZING ONLY WITH BIGGER ECONOMIC GROWTH

KOPAONIK, March 9 (Tanjug) - Serbian Minister of Finance Diana Dragutinovic said Tuesday that wages and pension should be unfrozen in 2010 only if the economic growth and budget revenues will be bigger than planned, with which Governor of the National Bank of Serbia (NBS) Radovan Jelasic agreed, warning that it would be irresponsible to increase wages and pension based on a new state debt.
"If the economic recovery would really be faster than expected, perhaps we could allow an increase, but significantly lower than the productivity of work," Dragutinovic told news reporters at the Business Forum at Mt. Kopaonik. The minister of finance pointed out that her personal position is that salaries and pension should remain frozen in 2010, and that their adjustment should be discussed together with the 2011 budget. Dragutinovic pointed out that she is always for the stimulation of offer, and not demand, but added that it is indeed difficult to endure two years with frozen wages while prices go up. Jelasic underscored that it would be irresponsible to increase the salaries and pensions based on a new debt, since this should be justified with realistic revenues.

JELASIC: GREEK SCENARIO FOR SERBIA IF IT CONTINUES TO OVERSPEND

KOPAONIK, March 9 (Tanjug) - If Serbia continues to base its economic growth on excessive domestic spending, this could lead to the "Greek scenario," Governor of the National bank of Serbia (NBS) Radovan Jelasic said Tuesday.
He pointed out at the ongoing Business Forum on Mt. Kopaonik that Serbia's problem is domestic demand, and added that the solution is to boost public investment, for which the money has already been acquired, and not to increase current spending. Jelasic stressed that the greatest challenge in 2010 will be current spending, that is the degree to which it will be politics or economy that will determine pay and pension levels.
The NBS governor expressed his hope that Serbia will evade the "snares of the past," and stressed that demand must be based on investments, and not on the growth of domestic spending, which seems to be an easier solution. Jelasic pointed out that in 2010 there will be no significant increase in bank loans, while the consolidated budget deficit will comprise four percent of the gross domestic product (GDP), and the balance-of-payments deficit between eight and nine percent of GDP.
The governor noted that since September 2008 to this day the Serbian dinar has weakened against the euro by 30 percent, and that 24 percent of this weakening was recorded in the period from September 2008 to February 2009. According to Jelasic, the inflation rate in 2009 was kept within the planned framework thanks to the drop in demand and freezing of pays and pensions, despite the record-high growth of regulated prices and the significant slide of the dinar.

AMBASSADORS: REFORMS MUST BE COMPLETED FOR INVESTMENTS TO ARRIVE

KOPAONIK, March 9 (Tanjug) - Ambassadors of the six countries participating in the Kopaonik Business Forum agreed on Tuesday that economic stability and the completion of reforms, especially in the legal system, is necessary in order for investments to start arriving in Serbia.
The ambassadors of the US, the Russian Federation, Germany, Italy, Greece and Austria expressed satisfaction with the Serbian government's determination to solve important issues and strike the right balance in reforms, which was evident in statements of the government representatives at the forum.
The ambassadors assessed that so far Serbia has had good results in attracting strategic investors to strategic sectors - energy and infrastructure - but they also pointed out that the country must not neglect the small and medium company sector. They announced that in their countries there is interest in investing in Serbia, and named energy, transportation, agriculture, infrastructure and tourism as the key sectors.
US Ambassador in Belgrade Mary Warlick said that it is important to point out that European Union membership is not the goal, but a means of achieving prosperity and that Serbia can use the membership to become integrated in the global economy.
Russian Ambassador in Belgrade Alexander Konuzin pointed out that Serbia is one of Russia's major partners in foreign trade and that the two countries are trying to find a balance in their trade.
German Ambassador Wolfram Maas said that German investors request information on business conditions in Serbia daily, and noted that Germany's experience in Serbia has been very positive. Italian Ambassador in Belgrade Armando Varricchio said that Italian companies found fertile business ground in Serbia, as evidenced by their EUR 2.4 billion turnover.

KOSOVO AND METOHIJA

MARTINS: GOOD SERBIA-KOSOVO RELATIONS DO NOT PREJUDGE STATUS

BELGRADE, March 9 (Tanjug) - Deputy Head of Delegation of the European Commission to Serbia Adriano Martins said Tuesday that good relations between Serbia and Kosovo are very important for fighting crime and smuggling and do not prejudge Kosovo status in any way.
Good relations are very important and are status neutral, he told the press. Serbia and Kosovo must cooperate and be pragmatic in preventing smuggling and criminal and other activities harmful to Serbia, he said. Neutral cooperation is therefore necessary, Martins said.

US TO PULL 570 TROOPS FROM KOSOVO

PRISTINA, March 10 (Tanjug) - The U.S. is pulling 570 of its troops out of Kosovo in the next two months as part of a NATO restructuring, the Pristina media reported Wednesday. By the end of May, about 830 U.S. troops will be left in the country, part of Multi-National Brigade-East (MNBE), Capt. Dan Murphy, public affairs officer for MNBE, said.
Murphy pointed out that officials feel that the number of troops left will be adequate to carry out the missions. After the end of the bombing in 1999, U.S. troop numbers topped 7,000 in the country, more than any other KFOR participant. Greece, Poland, Ukraine, Romania and Turkey also have troops in the U.S.-led sector. KFOR currently has around 10,000 troops in Kosovo, divided into five Multi-National Brigades.