Belgrade, 18. 02. 2010.

BELGRADE, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - President Boris Tadic and Prime Minister of Belgium Yves Leterme discussed the bilateral relations, the European integration of Serbia and the situation in Kosovo-Metohija. As Tadic's cabinet has released in a statement, Tadic and Leterme assessed that the bilateral relations have improved, and the president of Serbia expressed gratitude to Belgium for supporting the abolishment of visas for Serbian citizens and the continuation of the country's European integration.During the meeting, Tadic stressed that "Serbia will never recognize the independence of Kosovo-Metohija", and added that "the so-called plan for integration of North Kosovo is a threat for stability in the whole region." Boris Tadic also expressed his deepest condolences over the big rail accident in Belgium.

BELGRADE, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic stated that the Kosovo issue and Serbia's EU integration are two separate processes and that such a stand was confirmed in the talks with Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme. Belgrade expects an advisory opinion of the ICJ in The Hague but nevertheless it should not be expected that Serbia will change its stand in view of its territorial integrity and sovereignty, although it is willing already to pragmatically solve all practical issues related to everyday life of the people in the province, Cvetkovic said at a joint press conference. The EU integration remains the top priority of the Serbian authorities, Cvetkovic said and underscored that this is the message he will voice at the meeting with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton. When asked about the cooperation between Serbia and the ICTY and whether it hinders Serbia's EU accession, Cvetkovic said that this is not the case, adding that the problem is more political than technical. "We are doing everything in our might to arrest Ratko Mladic. That was also stated in the report of ICTY Chief Prosecutor Serge Brammertz and we expect that the next report will be similar," Cvetkovic said.

BELGRADE, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme said in Belgrade that what is really important is not when the Council of Europe will discuss Serbia's candidacy for EU membership, but rather the fact that it has become clear that Serbia is part of the European integration process. It is still uncertain whether Serbia's candidacy will be on the agenda of the EU summit in spring or in June, but it is certain that the EU Council will forward the candidacy to the EC and seek an opinion from it, Leterme told a news conference, following a meeting with his counterpart Cvetkovic. What is important is that it is clear now that Serbia has joined the European integration process, Leterme stressed. He also said that the European integration of the entire region is one of the most important reasons why he decided to tour the West Balkans, and pointed out that his visit will help Belgium prepare itself for the EU presidency which it will take over from Spain in July. Now that all authorities in the region have a pro-European orientation and opt for European integrations, the EU leaders have to use this historic moment in the best way they can, he said. Leterme reminded that the Balkans is a region with sensitive issues.However, there are often different views on certain matters within the EU itself, and this is why the essence of one's presiding over this body is to make it reach compromise on such issues, he added.The present task of the Belgian authorities is to improve the relations with Serbia and, at the European level, to assist the country's European integration, he said. The prime ministers of Belgium and Serbia agreed that the bilateral relations are good, but pointed out, however, that there is still room for further improvement. Leterme said that about twenty Belgian companies had already invested in Serbia, and that many more are interested in investing in the country. However, before they do that, the economy in Belgium itself has to recover, he added. The Belgian prime minister visited Montenegro and Albania, but his stay in Kosovo was postponed due to the train crash.

BELGRADE, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic said that the visit of EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, Catherine Ashton, is very important, and added that he expects her to support Serbia's EU aspirations . "Serbia's goal is to get the status of a EU candidate as soon as possible, but also, during the Spain's EU presidency, to work on the future European strategy which implies the inclusion of Roma people, and the solution of the issue of refugees in Western Balkans," Djelic told at the Serbian government's building.When asked what he expects of the talks, having in mind that during her visit to Bosnia-Herzegovina Ashton said that Western Balkans will be the priority of EU foreign policy, Djelic said that this shows that "statements that we often read are based on a true cognition of the importance of a faster EU integration of Western Balkans." He pointed out that during her first visit to Serbia, Ashton will be able to see the economic and social problems teh country is faced with in the time of economic crisis. "She will see great efforts our citizens are ready to make in order to sustain economic and financial stability, as well as the problems inside the region.At the same time, she will see the great potential of Serbia and Western Balkans," Djelic underscored.

BELGRADE, Feb 18 (Tanjug) - High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton, who is arriving today in Serbia on her first visit, has stated that she is going to Belgrade to discuss the next steps Serbia intends to make in order to have its candidacy for the EU membership make a progress. She underscored that Western Balkans is the main priority of the EU's foreign policy. It is a region in which the EU has invested great effort over the past two decades and the region in which we had assumed the biggest responsibility, said Ashton. We remain committed to the Euro prospects of the region as a whole, but consolidation of stability and progress towards the EU essentially remain in the responsibility of governments and citizens of the region, said Ashton. "Europe's door will be open for the region countries when the conditions get met, and we are working together with them to achieve that," Ashton said in an interview published by Vecernje Novosti. She said that consultations among the EU member states on Serbia's applications are in progress, aiming at finding the most suitable moment for decision making. Serbia should now continue to further develop its recent achievements and go forward in its European agenda, which we fully support," said Ashton, adding that the pace of the process depends on Serbia.

BELGRADE, Feb 18 (Tanjug) - President of the Foreign Ministry Council for Foreign Policy Sonja Liht stated that it is very important that newly appointed High Representative of the EU for FA and SP Catherine Ashton is coming to the region. In a statement with television B92, Liht evaluated Ashton's visit as very important, because "it is always important to be on the EU's agenda as a country and region." "Unlike Solana, who did not have his own budget to invest in certain activities, Ashton's function is much stronger, it includes two important functions, that of a head of diplomacy and security policy and that of a vice-president of the EU Commission and she has her own budget," said Liht. Liht believes that Serbia's role in the EU's new strategy for Kosovo is very big, because Kosovo is a topic that remains on the EU agenda. "Five EU countries have not and will not recognize independence of Kosovo.The EU as such may not have a unique stand, but this does not mean that it will not have an active role in the attempt to find a solution for this serious problem," said Liht.

BELGRADE, Feb 18 (Tanjug) - Deputy Prime Minister Djelic stated that Serbia has already started taking steps that should secure its status of a candidate state in the EU as soon as possible. On the occasion of today's visit by HR of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton, Djelic said that her support for Serbia's overcoming of the economic and financial crisis, together with Europe, will be requested from her. In an RTS broadcast, Djelic announced that the candidacy for the EU, submitted by Tadic in Stockholm, should be included in the agenda of one of the meetings of the EU Council of Ministers.

BELGRADE, Feb 18 (Tanjug) - Deputy Prime Minister Djelic stated that Serbia's goal is to receive the status of an EU candidate by the end of 2010 and the latest by mid of 2011. Djelic said at a session of the parliamentary committee on EU integration that Serbia's aim is for the EC to be given green light to take into consideration Serbia's EU candidacy bid during Spain's six-month EU presidency and to receive the candidate status during the next mandate in which Belgium is to hold the EU rotating presidency. Djelic said that Serbia puts considerable efforts for the candidacy application to be put on the agenda at one of the upcoming sessions of the EU Council of Ministers, adding that Serbia is actively preparing for such a course of events regardless if they will take place in spring or summer. On the occasion of the presentation of the report on the implementation of National Program for EU Integration for the period between Oct and Dec 2009, Djelic said that the total fulfillment of the quarterly report is 77 %, meaning that out of 115 provisions, 88 have been adopted. According to him, parliament adopted 22 bills in the mentioned period which is, as he put it, more than planned thus making it one of the three most efficient parliaments in 2009. "This proves that Serbia's EU path is not possible without the Serbian parliament," Djelic said and expressed hope that Serbia and its institutions will realize all their goals in 2010. He stated that the end of 2012, as a deadline by which all Serbian regulations should be harmonized with the EU ones, is an ambitious goal and that all countries had problems with that, adding that by then another 420 provisions should be adopted and that demands even greater productivity of the government and a parliament which is still among the three most efficient.

BELGRADE, Feb 18 (Tanjug) - Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic has stated that the diplomatic fight for Kosovo has three priorities: halting the recognition of unilateral independence, preventing Kosovo from joining international organizations and drawing attention to violation of human rights, particularly the freedom of movement. He stated that in the previous two years, the Serbian diplomacy has proved successful in the realization of two priorities, given that two thirds of the world countries do not recognize Kosovo in spite of the pressure of some of the most important countries and that Kosovo has not become a member of any international organization, besides the IMF and the World Bank where the voting system favors the US influence. The Foreign Ministry received from the World Health Organization (WHO) an official notification saying that the Kosovo application was refused owing to an urgent diplomatic intervention. "Two years ago, it looked like the wave of the recognition of Kosovo could not be stopped after the biggest world powers recognized it. We managed to halt the process bearing in mind the pressure that US has exerted and now everything is relative even the status of Kosovo," Jeremic said for daily Blic. According to him, a critical period is coming since when the ICJ voices its opinion, the pressure to continue Kosovo's recognition will be increased whereas Serbia is determined to confront it and rebuild the dialogue on the status of Kosovo. As for the third priority, drawing attention to violation of human rights, particularly the freedom of movement, the Foreign Ministry is preparing a determined presentation at a ministerial conference on human rights in Geneva early in March. All Serbian ambassadors were given the task to present the host countries with the violation of human rights in Kosovo, he said.

BELGRADE, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said that Serbia will keep fighting to prevent the new wave of recognitions of Kosovo's independence, and to block the membership of Kosovo in international organizations. Jeremic pointed out that, after the decision of the ICJ, Serbia will put efforts to renew the status-related dialogue between Belgrade & Pristina. "A lot of countries wrote off Serbia two years ago, and only a small number of countries believed that we will have the courage and strength to resist the independence of Kosovo. But now, two years later, few countries recognized Kosovo and it did not become a member of any important international organization," Jeremic told RTS. He added that Serbia prevented that Kosovo becomes a member of the World Health Organization, by an aggressive diplomatic presentation. The Foreign Minister stressed that Belgrade has chosen to use peaceful legal, political and diplomatic means, in order to preserve its own state interests. Jeremic underscored that, due to that, peace and stability in the region are preserved and Serbia continued to follow its pathway towards EU integrations.

BELGRADE, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - Deputy Prime Minister Ivica Dacic said that Serbia will never recognize independence of Kosovo-Metohija. Secession of Serbia's province is contrary to international law, he said. Serbia will never recognize independence of Kosovo-Metohija because that would undermine the foundations of its state and of its spiritual values, Dacic told. The unilateral declaration of Kosovo's independence is contrary to international law, he said. Two years have passed since that event. It is now up to international law to halt that process, he said. Dacic thanked all countries which have not recognized the secession of Serbia's southern province. Serbia is ready to discuss all problems regarding Kosovo-Metohija but is not ready to recognize unilateral secession of a part of its territory, he said. He noted that the ICJ is expected to issue an advisory opinion on the legality of the unilateral declaration, at Serbia's request. After the ICJ ruling, a new political reality should ensue.

PRISTINA, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - Pristina marked the 2nd anniversary of the unilateral proclamation of independence of the Serbia's southern province with much less euphoric sentiment than last year, but did not fail to accuse Serbia again of aggressive policy towards the province. At the solemn session of the interim Kosovo National Assembly, in the presence of several US senators and congressmen, leaders of international civil and military missions, MP's and other Kosovo officials, President Fatmir Sejdiu said that the institutions in Pristina have always worked in coordination with friendly countries, with the USA, the major powers of the EU and other friendly countries, striving for further recognition of the Republic of Kosovo. According to him, the only problem for Pristina is the relations with Belgrade. He accused Serbia of aggressive policy against Kosovo. Belgrade is supporting the parallel structures operating in the north of Kosovo, where acts of high-scale smuggling and financial crime are still being committed. Serbia has invested hundreds and millions of euros to support these structures, which are keeping the Serb community living in this part of Kosovo hostage and preventing the members of this community from getting integrated into the institutional and social life in Kosovo, Sejdiu said.

VIENNA, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - The second anniversary of the unilateral declaration of independence finds Kosovo far from being an independent and functional country, Head of the FPO delegation to the European Parliament Andreas Melzer assessed. Kosovo is a de facto international protectorate which is a burden to the international community and especially the EU, and there is no change in sight to the situation in the southern Serbian province plagued by poverty and corruption, stressed the member of the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee. He said that it is time for Brussels to face reality now that EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton is starting her three-day visit to the Western Balkans. Despite the wishes of the Eurocrats in Brussels, Kosovo will not become a multiethnic country, and neither will Bosnia-Herzegovina. The national identities formed through centuries of history cannot vanish at the EU's demand, Melzer explained. He pointed out that the Balkan region is key to Europe's safety and asked that the EU adopt a neutral position to Belgrade. Serbia's European ambitions must not be tied in any way to the demand that Serbia recognize Kosovo, because that would not only be a slap in the face to the Serbian people, but also against international law, since UN Resolution 1244 declared Kosovo a part of Serbia, Melzer underlined.

VIENNA, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - EP Rapporteur for Kosovo Ulrike Lunacek asked the EU countries which have not yet recognized Kosovo's independence to do so. She also said that the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton should make it clear during her forthcoming visit to Belgrade that Serbia's accession to the EU will not be possible without recognizing Kosovo. Serbia must get used to the reality of Kosovo's independence and give up its policy of economic blockade within the CEFTA, Lunacek said. It is time for five EU countries to consider recognizing Kosovo's independence, and Ashton should endeavor to that end, Lunacek said. Divided stands within the EU are not conducive to a coherent European policy on Kosovo, for instance in the north of the country, she said.

BELGRADE, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - President Boris Tadic conferred with Hungarian Parliament Speaker Bela Katona. Tadic expressed his support to the passing of legislation that would secure representation of minorities, including the Serb minority, in the Hungarian Parliament, the president's press office said. Tadic also commended the good cooperation between Serbian state institutions and the Hungarian minority National Council. Tadic and Katona discussed bilateral relations and Serbia's EU integration. They described bilateral relations as good and expressed hope that the two countries will continue to foster cooperation in political, economic, cultural and other sectors. Tadic thanked Hungary for its support to Serbia's integration in European and Eure-Atlantic structures.

BELGRADE, Feb 18 (Tanjug) - Prime Minister Cvetkovic conferred with Hungarian parliament speaker Bela Katona on bilateral relations and Serbia's activities in the EU integration process. Cvetkovic expressed gratitude to Hungary for it strong support to Serbia's EU integration and pointed out that by submission of the EU candidacy bid, Serbia has confirmed its firm pro-European orientation, the Serbian government said. It was stated in the talks that Serbia and Hungary are working intensively on the development of all forms of cooperation, particularly the economic one and more specifically in the domain of energetics and infrastructure, the statement said. It was also stated that the promotion of regional cooperation is extremely important for drafting of a joint European strategy for the Danubian countries and the completion of the north section of Corridor 10. "The presence of the Hungarian minority in Serbia and the Serb minority in Hungary is an important bridge of cooperation in the bilateral relations and Serbia will, as it has done so far, continue to fully contribute to further promotion of the position of the Hungarian minority in Serbia,".

BELGRADE, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - Parliament speakers of Serbia and Hungary, Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic and Bela Katona respectively, announced the cooperation between the boards of the two parliaments in the field of agriculture, ecology and energy. "We agreed that we should initiate the cooperation between certain parliamentary bodies, i.e. the Board for Agriculture, the Board for Ecology and the Board for Energy," Djukic-Dejanovic said at a joint press conference. According to her, they also discussed the legislative activity of the Serbian parliament, with a special attention to the councils of ethnic minorities and giving consent to the Statute of Vojvodina. "After adopting the Law on Parliament, the Serbian and Hungarian parliaments will foster the future cooperation," Djukic-Dejanovic concluded. Katona said that Hungary can share its experience with Serbia, which has recently applied for EU membership. Djukic-Dejanovic and Katona expressed their satisfaction with the constructive talks, and evaluated that all the harmonized activities of the parliaments of the countries of Western Balkans are useful for a mutual goal on the pathway towards EU integration.

BELGRADE, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - Russian Emergency Situations Minister Sergei Shoigu dismissed as completely nonsensical the speculations in the Serbian public that the future regional emergency situations center in Nis will also be used for military purposes.At a press conference he attended with Interior Minister Dacic, Shoigu said it is hard to believe such speculations are possible in Serbia.The Russian minister added that such opinions could not even be dubbed speculations, stressing once more that they are a complete nonsense.An international conference on experience in managing emergency situations and the necessity for creating a regional emergency situations center, organized by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Serbia, and opened by Prime Minister, was held in Belgrade.The conference, dedicated to creating a regional emergency situations center in Nis, was attended by the Russian delegation led by Shoigu.The conference was also attended by officials from Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Denmark, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Cyprus, Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia and Slovenia.

BELGRADE, Feb 18 (Tanjug) - Croatian Ambassador to Belgrade Zeljko Kupresak said that no one in his country wanted to demean Serbia with the decision of who to invite to the inauguration of President Ivo Josipovic, and expressed regret that Serbian President Boris Tadic would not attend the inauguration. "Emotions need to be controlled and passions cooled. Serbia is an important partner for Croatia, but for the stability of the region it is also important to help the democratization of Kosovo," Kupresak told Radio B92. He added that it is not appropriate for one country to impose conditions on another regarding which country it can invite to the president's inauguration. President Tadis is not attending Josipovic's inauguration today because Kosovo President Sejdiu was invited. The Croatian ambassador pointed out that, all of this notwithstanding, Serbia and Croatia have good relations today, adding that the foreign trade between the two countries totaled only USD 20 million in 1999, while it now reaches over a billion Euros.

BELGRADE, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - At a meeting with IMF representatives, Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic stressed the dedication of the Serbian government to respecting the agreement with the financial institution, especially in regards to limiting the growth of salaries, pensions and other fiscal expenditures. A working group with the Ministry of Finance has been formed to prepare a fiscal responsibility law, which will limit budget spending through explicitly defined criteria and thus improve budget planning and control. This will result in medium-term stability and predictability of Serbia's fiscal system, it is said in a statement issued by the government's press office. Djelic acquainted the IMF delegation with Serbia's Euro integration efforts, and the steps the country is taking to make its economy more competitive. In January, the government adopted a set of recommendations from the National Competitiveness Council, intended to improve the business environment, make Serbia more attractive to investors and contribute to a rise in exports, reads the statement. The official meetings between IMF and the Serbian government, as part of the third review of the stand-by arrangement, started with a plenary session on Febr 9 and will continue until Febr 23.

BELGRADE, Feb 17 (Tanjug) - The number of tourists passing through Serbia on cruise ships on the Danube has increased from 17,000 in 2003 to 109,000 in 2009, Minister of Economy Dinkic pointed out, saying this is evidence that the country has started using the advantages that this big river offers. Signing the contract with the GTZ Dinkic said that in 2003, 141 ships docked at Danube ports in Serbia, while last year the number reached 800. "This shows that we have started using the potential, but I believe we are only at the beginning, because taking into consideration the experiences of other countries, it is possible to achieve a far better result," Dinkic said. So far, the most tourist ships docked in Belgrade and Novi Sad, and fewer in Gornji Milanovac, where the well-preserved remains of the Neolithic settlement Lepenski vir are located, and in Kostolac, in whose vicinity is the site of the ancient Roman city of Viminacium, which means there is a lot of room to improve the tourist offerings, the minister said. The Tourism Organization of Serbia has prepared a special tourist route named The Roads of Roman Emperors and significant funds have been invested in the restoration of Roman imperial cities, such as Viminacium and Sirmium, the minister said. He mentioned Lepenski vir as one of the most important locations, where a protective dome has been built so that visitors can imagine what life there looked like 7,000 years ago. Concluding that there is only one equipped marina in Apatin, Dinkic said that there is need for similar ones in Sremski Karlovci and in lower Podunavlje (the Danube river basin).