"Serbia, Bosnia relations should enter new era"

"Serbia, Bosnia relations should enter new era"

Following a meeting with his Bosnian counterpart Sven Alkalaj, Jeremić said that they discussed the International Court of Justice (ICJ) judgment on Bosnia’s genocide lawsuit against Serbia, adding that the part that was the most difficult for Serbia was the one stating that Serbia “failed to prevent the genocide of Bosnian Muslims at Srebrenica”.

Jeremić underscored that Serbia and Bosnia should turn a new page in their relations, join ranks and work together on the path of European integrations that would secure better future for the citizens.

The fact that the new foreign minister has chosen Bosnia as his first diplomatic destination is interpreted in Sarajevo as a gesture of a positive shift in Serbian policy towards Bosnia, and has set the tone of the meeting between Jeremić and Alkalaj.

Alkalaj welcomed Jeremić's visit to Sarajevo, describing it as a very strong message to the region, Brussels and Washington that the two states can cooperate in a friendly manner.

Jeremić, for his part, stated clearly that he assigned top priority to fostering neighborly relations with Bosnia.

Despite an apparent willingness to promote bilateral relations, numerous obstacles are still in the way of restoring trust between Bosnia and Serbia, one of it being the arrest of war crimes fugitives in regards to which Serbia is continuously facing pressures from abroad.

Speaking of the Hague indictees, Jeremić pledged Serbia’s commitment to bring them before justice in the shortest time possible.

Ahead of his trip to Sarajevo, Jeremić told Bosnian press that the arrest of Hague fugitives, Ratko Mladić in particular, was above all important in light of the ICJ ruling.

Alkalaj confirmed that today’s meeting addressed the vital issue of dual citizenship, which, according to him, needs to be handled without any tensions.

“Citizens of Bosnia-Herzegovina enjoy the same right regardless of where they reside, which is why we wish for the dual citizenship agreement to take its full shape,” he said.

Speaking about Kosovo, Jeremić reiterated that any form of independence for the province was unacceptable for Serbia and that the Serbian government pushed for a fresh round of negotiations, the government said on its website.

“Serbia is against any imposed solution for Kosovo, for it would create instability and send the region back to the 1990s,” Jeremić underlined.

On behalf of Serbian president Boris Tadić, Jeremić invited members of the Bosnian Presidency to visit Belgrade in the fall, in order to attend a session of the Inter-State Council for building relations between Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Jeremić will also visit Banja Luka and together with Republic of Srpska (RS) prime minister Milorad Dodik open the renovated offices of the Serbian general consulate in that town.