EU trade deal failure fallout in parliament

Opposition parties have on Tuesday demanded a debate in parliament on the trade agreement failure yesterday. Despite announcements from some Serbian officials that the Interim Trade Agreement with the EU, a part of the suspended SAA, might be unfrozen, the EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday decided otherwise. EU trade deal failure fallout in parliament Today, Cedomir Jovanovic's Liberal Democrats (LSD), and the newly formed parliamentary group Forward Serbia, led by former Serb Radicals (SRS) number two Tomislav Nikolic, proposed a parliament discussion on the reasons and responsibility for the slowdown in Serbia's EU integration bid. Other opposition parties have backed this move, while the Radicals have separately demanded that Deputy PM Bozidar Djelic, DS, resigns. "We expect the prime minister and the deputy premier in charge of European integrations to show up here in parliament as the next session in prepared, in order to enable the defining of a policy that would represent an answer to a big failure and big defeat of our society," Jovanovic said. He added that producing a new policy is more important than determining personal responsibility, and explained that this new policy should "increase the level of trust that is low in Brussels, that would then allows us the unblocking of the process of European integrations". Also today, the SRS decided to withdraw their previous initiative for parliament Speaker Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic, SPS, to be sacked from that post, because Nikolic stood behind the proposal. The Radicals submitted a new initiative with the same goal. Meanwhile, the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) leader Vojislav Kostunica assessed on Tuesday that continued suspension of the Interim Trade Agreement with the EU proved that Serbia could not expect respect from other countries if the current authorities had no strength to show at least elementary self-respect in defending the interests of the state. “The Netherlands was one of the first countries that unlawfully recognized the unilateral independence of Kosovo and in doing that, it violated the initialed agreement with Serbia in a most brutal way, which, however, did not prevent the representatives of the current authorities, who have not demand any explanation whatsoever from the EU member countries that acknowledged Kosovo's independence, from signing and ratifying this agreement in the Serbian parliament,” Kostunica said in a statement for Tanjug. He added that Holland "obviously saw this as a message that if something was its own interest, it could always, whenever it chose, blackmail and pose conditions to Serbia". According to the DSS leader, "the most cynical was the position of European officials that in spite of the fact, or maybe just because of it, that 21 EU member states had recognized Kosovo's unlawful independence and that the EU had frozen he agreement with our country, Serbia should begin implementing the agreement unilaterally". “Such a path and such policy will take Serbia nowhere, but will only make her sacrifice her state and national interests in return for cheap promises,” Kostunica concluded.

EU trade deal failure fallout in parliament

Today, Čedomir Jovanović's Liberal Democrats (LSD), and the newly formed parliamentary group Forward Serbia, led by former Serb Radicals (SRS) number two Tomislav Nikolić, proposed a parliament discussion on the reasons and responsibility for the slowdown in Serbia's EU integration bid.

Other opposition parties have backed this move, while the Radicals have separately demanded that Deputy PM Božidar Đelić, DS, resigns.

"We expect the prime minister and the deputy premier in charge of European integrations to show up here in parliament as the next session in prepared, in order to enable the defining of a policy that would represent an answer to a big failure and big defeat of our society," Jovanović said.

He added that producing a new policy is more important than determining personal responsibility, and explained that this new policy should "increase the level of trust that is low in Brussels, that would then allows us the unblocking of the process of European integrations".

Also today, the SRS decided to withdraw their previous initiative for parliament Speaker Slavica Đukić-Dejanović, SPS, to be sacked from that post, because Nikolić stood behind the proposal. The Radicals submitted a new initiative with the same goal.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) leader Vojislav Koštunica assessed on Tuesday that continued suspension of the Interim Trade Agreement with the EU proved that Serbia could not expect respect from other countries if the current authorities had no strength to show at least elementary self-respect in defending the interests of the state.

“The Netherlands was one of the first countries that unlawfully recognized the unilateral independence of Kosovo and in doing that, it violated the initialed agreement with Serbia in a most brutal way, which, however, did not prevent the representatives of the current authorities, who have not demand any explanation whatsoever from the EU member countries that acknowledged Kosovo's independence, from signing and ratifying this agreement in the Serbian parliament,” Koštunica said in a statement for Tanjug.

He added that Holland "obviously saw this as a message that if something was its own interest, it could always, whenever it chose, blackmail and pose conditions to Serbia".

According to the DSS leader, "the most cynical was the position of European officials that in spite of the fact, or maybe just because of it, that 21 EU member states had recognized Kosovo's unlawful independence and that the EU had frozen he agreement with our country, Serbia should begin implementing the agreement unilaterally".

“Such a path and such policy will take Serbia nowhere, but will only make her sacrifice her state and national interests in return for cheap promises,” Koštunica concluded.