Belgrade, 27. 01. 2010.

SERBIA - EU

• TADIC: EU MEMBERSHIP CRUCIAL FOR SERBIA
• DJELIC: SERBIA'S GOAL TO BECOME EU CANDIDATE BY END OF 2010
• AUSTRIA AND GREECE LAUNCH INITIATIVE FOR BALKANS IN EU
• SPINDELEGGER: FIRST RATIFICATION OF SAA, THEN OTHER STEPS
• GREECE IN FAVOUR OF WESTERN BALKANS' ASSOCIATION INTO EU

• COOPERATION WITH SERBIA GOOD, FUGITIVES SHOULD BE ARRESTED
• SERBIA AMONG NEW COUNTRIES ELIGIBLE FOR SEASONAL JOBS IN US
• BRADIC RECEIVES US HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL MUSEUM REPRESENTATIVES
• GENERAL MILETIC EXPECTS KFOR TO BE STATUS NEUTRAL
• BORKA PAVICEVIC RECEIVES EUROPEAN CULTURAL FOUNDATION AWARD
• USD 40 MILLION WORTH OF EXPORT TO ASIA AND USA

• MORATINOS, JEREMIC CONFER ON NORTH OF KOSOVO-METOHIJA
• MALOVIC: SERBIA HONORS ALL INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTS ON KOSOVO
• BOGDANOVIC: INCIDENT IN DRSNIK VILLAGE IS NOT ACCIDENTAL
• IVANOVIC: NO CHANCES FOR FEITH'S STRATEGY TO BE REALIZED
• US AMBASSADOR BACKS GOVT EFFORTS FOR KOSOVO'S NORTH

BELGRADE, Jan 26 (Tanjug) - Serbian President Boris Tadic said Tuesday that Serbia has reached the highest level of democratic development in its history, but not yet the point at which the process of democratization and institutional reform becomes irreversible.

The critical threshold will be the moment when Serbia will clearly be on the brink of full European Union membership, when it becomes absolutely clear that Serbia will be a full EU member within a year, year and a half or two, he said. It is then that this process can be said to be irreversible Tadic said, opening the conference "How many more steps to the EU?". Serbia does not need concessions for EU integration, but it does need sincere support and assistance from the EU, Tadic said.

Serbia does not want any favors from anyone. It wants to fulfill all its commitments, but asks for understanding of this difficult process that cannot be completed in one year Tadic noted. This process will continue, but cannot run indefinitely and Serbia must have a reasonable time in which to meet its commitments, for which it expects sincere support and help, Tadic said. Explaining the importance of Serbia for the EU, Tadic stated that it has a key geo-strategic position and political importance in the South East Europe region and that there can therefore be no stability in the Balkans without Serbia in the EU. Only with Serbia in the EU can the chronically unstable area of Western Balkans be unified and free from further fragmentation, Tadic said.

He said that Serbia did not become only a factor of stability in the region, but that its policy towards Kosovo-Metohija has become a factor of stability in a much broader context. Serbia is a country that solves its problems, such as Kosovo- Metohija, in a peaceful and democratic manner, offering model solutions to other countries that are facing similar problems, Tadic said.

Explaining mutual economic interests of Serbia and the EU, Tadic said that Serbia will in the future become the energy, infrastructure and information center in the region and that investing in Serbia would guarantee economic benefits. The conference "How many more steps to the EU?" was organized by the German Foundation Konrad Adenauer, and Tadic used the opportunity to once again highlight the importance of Serbian-German cooperation.

BELGRADE, Jan 26 (Tanjug) Serbia's Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration Bozidar Djelic said Tuesday that the country's goal is for its EU membership application to be confirmed by Brussels during Spain's presidency over the EU and to become an EU candidate country by the end of 2010.

"Our goal is for Serbia's membership application to get a green light as soon as possible during Spain's presidency over the EU, so that the ratification of the Stabilization and Association Agreement could begin after (International Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia Chief Prosecutor) Serge Brammertz's report (on Serbia's cooperation with the Tribunal)," Djelic said at a conference, entitled How Many More Steps to the EU, which was organized by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.

Djelic said that Serbia got the questionnaires that the EU had sent to all other countries in the region that have so far applied for membership, and that the answers to the questions Serbia has yet to receive "are already being prepared."

"Many will probably be surprised at the speed and quality of work that we are going to do," Djelic added, stressing that it will be important for Serbia to get a date for the opening of pre-accession negotiations once it is granted candidate status. Director of Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Serbia Claudia Crawford said that four years ago, it was not clear which path Serbia would choose, and that its European future was not certain, but that it is not so now.

VIENNA, Jan 27 (Tanjug) - Austria and Greece have realized their initiative for the Western Balkans by handing over a letter to EU High Representative for Foreign Police Catherine Ashton and foreign ministers of the Union member states, in which they urge for the accession of the region countries in 2014, on the 100th anniversary of the beginning of World War I.

As Tanjug was informed at the Foreign Ministry in Vienna, the letter was addressed on the basis of the agreement Austrian Foreign Minister Michael Schpidnelegger and Deputy Foreign Minister of Greece Dimitris Drucas on actualization of the initiative of the two countries to speed up the process of accession of the Western Balkan countries in the EU reached in Athens last week. The two diplomats called for a ratification of the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) with Serbia soon.

They also recommend that the EU should take steps in regards the candidate status which Belgrade applied for late last year. According to their idea, mainly that of Athens, all countries of the Western Balkans should become members of the EU in 2014, because it is a symbolic year.

NOVI SAD, Jan 27 (Tanjug) - Austrian Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger has said that it is not possible for the EU to reach consensus on the next step which should be made in the direction of Serbia's application for EU membership before the issue of the country's cooperation with The Hague Tribunal is resolved, but voiced expectation, however, that agreement will be reached in the next few months.

According to him, certain EU member countries, such as Holland, insist on a clearly defined schedule of moves and seek stronger proof that Serbia is cooperating with the Tribunal, without which, as they claim, it is not possible to reach accord and require from the Council of Ministers to seek an opinion from the European Commission on Serbia's readiness for EU membership.

I am confident that in the next couple of months we will be in a position to convince them that Serbia is fully cooperating with The Hague Tribunal, Spindelegger a said in an interview for the Novi Sad daily Dnevnik, noting that this would be a step forward toward the ratification of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) and all the other moves which Serbia will have to make on its EU pathway.

Our number one goal is that the EU Council reaches a decision on the ratification of the SAA with Serbia, because this decision is essential for the next step that implies Serbia's application for EU membership, he said. Austria unconditionally advocates for a decision to be reached on the ratification of the SAA, Spindelegger underlined, noting that for the moment, no one knows when exactly that will happen.

He said that there is no direct official link between Serbia's further progress in the EU integration process and the country's attitude toward Kosovo, but assessed, however, that efforts should be put so as to avoid the possibility that someone (in the EU) decides, after all, to bring these two issues in connection.

STRASBOURG, Jan 26 (Tanjug) - Greece's Prime Minister George Papandreou addressed the Council of Europe's Parliamentary Assembly on Tuesday, saying that Greece is advocating the so called Agenda 2014 for the accession of Western Balkan countries into the EU on the 100th anniversary of the beginning of World War I.

The integration of new countries will counter enlargement fatigue in the EU and act as a catalyst for internal reforms in the new members, as well as solving major issues, like Kosovo, the Greek media report.

BRUSSELS, Jan 26 (Tanjug) - Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) Serge Brammertz said Tuesday that ICTY is satisfied with Serbia's endeavors for cooperation, but that one of the main priorities - arrest of indictees Ratko Mladic and Goran Hadzic has yet to be realized.

Results are still missing, and arresting fugitives is one of the main ICTY priorities, he told the European Parliament foreign policy committee. Brammertz said that Serbia's cooperation with ICTY is at the same level as in December, when he presented his report to the UN Security Council. He expressed hope that there will be positive developments before his next report.

WASHINGTON, Jan 26 (Tanjug) - US Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano included Serbia on the list of 11 new countries which are now eligible for the nonimmigrant visa program for temporary or seasonal job in the US.

Joining Serbia on the list are Croatia, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Ireland, Lithuania, Holland Nicaragua, Norway, Slovakia and Uruguay, it was announced on the US Department of Homeland Security website. After consulting with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Napolitano determined that the 11 newly designated countries meet the standards required for participation in the H-2A and H-2B programs.

The countries join the group of 28 countries previously designated as eligible to participate in these programs. The programs allow US employers to bring foreign nationals to fill temporary or seasonal jobs for which US workers are not available.

BELGRADE, Jan 26 (Tanjug) - Serbian Culture Minister Nebojsa Bradic received Tuesday the representatives of the US Holocaust Memorial Museum who are visiting Belgrade in order to continue cooperation in the area of gathering archive material from the period of the Nazi occupation of Serbia and the Holocaust, the Serbian Culture Ministry stated.

The meeting was attended by Director of Archives of Serbia Miroslav Perisic, Political Affairs Officer at the US Embassy Eric Collings and Museum representative in Belgrade Emir Holcer. "Millions of victims oblige us to preserve the memory of their lives, to preserve the concentration camps and execution sites for the future generations as an example of what must never happen again.

The governments are obliged to enable, through education systems, the young generations to learn about the sufferings in the Second World War, about the Holocaust, the damage of racial policy so that the young could draw a moral lesson and thus be capable to adequately face the challenges of modern age," Bradic said. Radu Ioanid, Director of the Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies US Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, represented the museum which receives about one million of visitors from all over the world every year and which has a permanent exhibition as well as occasional thematic exhibitions.

After the cooperation with the Archives of Yugoslavia, the US museum wants to establish cooperation with the Archives of Serbia as a reference institution in the area, which the Archives of Serbia is ready to do.

BRUSSELS, BELGRADE, Jan 26 (Tanjug) - Serbian Army Chief of Staff Lt.Gen. Miloje Miletic said at a meeting of the NATO Military Committee in Brussels he expects KFOR to be status neutral and to act in keeping with the UN Security Council Resolution 1244.

Any hasty and early reduction of KFOR contingent in Kosovo could have serious consequences for the implementation of the mandate of the international force, Miletic said quoted by a Serbian Army release. He pointed to the Serbian Army readiness to cooperate actively within the framework of Partnership for Peace and thus contribute to facing regional and international security challenges.

The Serbian Army is pursuing its reform process, especially as regards professionalization and reaching the highest standards, he said. Miletic was taking part in the 24th session the NATO Military Committee, attended by chiefs of staff of NATO members and partner states. The two-day annual session was attended by 63 chiefs of staff and focused on increasing the flexibility of NATO response forces. During his visit to Brussels, Miletic conferred with Russian Armed Forces Chief of Staff General Nikolai Makarov, the release says. They discussed the fostering of bilateral military cooperation.

BELGRADE, Jan 27 (Tanjug) - Playwright and Director of the Belgrade Center for Cultural Decontamination (CZKD) Borka Pavicevic received the Routes Award for 2009 at the Royal Flemish Theatre in Brussels Tuesday evening.

Pavicevic won the award of the European Cultural Foundation, in the amount of EUR 25,000, for her work on preserving cultural differences in the region, Tanjug learned from CZKD.

BELGRADE, Jan 26 (Tanjug) - The business cooperation between two Serbian companies, Jugoimport SDPR and Sloboda from Cacak, will continue in 2010 with their joint appearance on foreign markets, but most of all by exporting USD 40 million worth of ammunition, Jugoimport announced Tuesday.

The new Sloboda management has agreed to cooperate with Jugoimport in selling Sloboda's products, which are mostly various types of ammunition, in Asia and USA. "These export deals will bring more work and a USD 40 million influx for Sloboda in 2010," says the announcement. Sloboda is part of the Serbian military industry, founded back in 1948, and it comprises two factories, one manufacturing military equipment and the other household appliances.

BRUSSELS, Jan 26 (Tanjug) - Spain's Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos, whose country currently presides over the European Union (EU), announced Monday that the EU will work on finding a practical solution for the north of Kosovo that will be of use for everyone.

Moratinos told at a joint press conference with Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic and departing EU Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn that within the political dialogue with Serbia, it was also discussed about the strategy for the north of Kosovo-Metohija composed by the Pristina authorities and the International Civilian Office (ICO).

We are working pragmatically and constructively. We will be in contact in the forthcoming period and find a practical solution that will be useful for everyone, the Spanish minister stated. Jeremic said that Belgrade does not recognize the existence of the ICO headed by Pieter Feith since it is not in conformity with international law. "We can confer with EULEX or anyone else having a legal mandate in Kosovo in keeping with UN Security Council (SC) Resolution 1244," Jeremic said.

"As for the strategy for the north of Kosovo, we believe that it is supported by the countries that support the ICO operation, but is not supported by EU," he added. Jeremic warned that one sided moves should not be taken any more, which have been, as he put it, too numerous so far, adding that cooperation has to be realized.

KRAGUJEVAC, Jan 26 (Tanjug) - Serbia will honor all international documents on Kosovo status, Justice Minister Snezana Malovic said Tuesday.

Asked by the press on her opinion on the plan of the head of International Civilian Office Peter Feith for integration of the northern part of Kosovo in Kosovo institutions, she said that the only relevant decision will be the one of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the legality of the proclamation of Kosovo's independence. As regards Kosovo, Serbia will continue to abide only by the decisions taken by the UN, she said. Malovic said that as a citizen and a state official, she expects the process to continue.

BELGRADE, Jan 26 (Tanjug) - Serbian Minister for Kosovo-Metohija Goran Bogdanovic stated that the Tuesday arrest of Assistant Minister for Kosovo-Metohija Branislav Ristic and a representative of the ministry in the village of Drsnik near the Klina municipality is not an accidental incident, adding that this is a clear proof that Pristina has decided to make more radical and drastic moves.

"From now on, all consequences will be taken by the one who causes the incident since our patience is close to an end and such incidents do not contribute to reconciliation and collectiveness that the Serbian government works on," Bogdanovic told Tanjug. He added that the international community will have to clearly define its position this time and offer an unambiguous response when and in what manner it will "harness Pristina and call it to senses".

According to him, the Tuesday event and incidents that took place in Kosovo in the previous days send a message that the so-called Kosovo government will not allow Serbs to return to their ancestral homes and that there is no space for them in Kosovo-Metohija. He underscored that Ristic, who is in charge of the return, was there to meet with the community of the returnees on Tuesday and see what problems they face and in what way they can be encouraged to stay in Kosovo. Bogdanovic said that there were immediate reactions in view of the incident and that all relevant international organizations in Kosovo-Metohija and Belgrade were contacted. The Kosovo police arrested Assistant Minister for Kosovo-Metohija Branislav Ristic in the village of Drsnik Tuesday during his meeting with Serbs, returnees to the municipality of Klina.

BELGRADE, Jan 26 (Tanjug) - Serbian State Secretary for Kosovo-Metohija Oliver Ivanovic stated Monday that there is no chance that the strategy of chief of the International Civilian Office (ICO) Pieter Feith for the north of Kosovo will be realized.

Ivanovic said for the Belgrade-based TV B92 that the strategy is absolutely futile without the conformity of the Serbian party, adding that are no chances that the Pristina government will establish control over the whole territory of Kosovo-Metohija. He stated that there is great danger for all international representatives in Kosovo-Metohija to be caught in a trap, skillfully set by the ethnic Albanians, that the north of Kosovo is the only problem and that that everything else is all right. Ivanovic believes that the strategy should not be paid too much attention since, as he put it, its author is a man who has not been successful so far and whose reputation and status are not high in the EU.

"It was not likely that a man whose mandate expires by the middle of the year and who will have problem to provide justification for his existence and work would come up with such a letter or pamphlet that stands no chances of realization," Ivanovic said. Ivanovic underscored that Feith did not succeed in the attempt to win the support of broad public in Europe and that Kosovo will not bind or hinder Serbia in its EU integration process.

PRISTINA, Jan 27 (Tanjug) - U.S. Ambassador to Kosovo Christopher Dell stated on Tuesday that his country support the plan of the International Civil Office (ICO) and Kosovo's government for the establishment of the Pristina authorities of a higher level in the north of Kosovo.

We fully support the plan of the government and ICO to establish a new system of authority in the north, with a special emphasis on the rule of law, Dell said after a meeting with Kosovo justice minister Nekiba Keljmendi. According to his evaluation, parallel structures and organized crime structures are characteristics of illegality. We are very much aware that citizens living north of the Ibar River are rather frustrated and disappointed because they live alongside criminal structures, said Dell.

Let us be clear: criminal structures, structures of organized crime in the country's north are fully linked with the so-called parallel structures, said he. Criminals, regardless of whether they are Serbs or Albanians, coexist and cooperation where there is no law, and the people who suffer are those who live there, Dell also said. The parallel structures and structures of organized crime get combined into something illegal, said the US ambassador.