“Belgrade negotiating NIS sale only”

Srbijagas Director Dusan Bajatovic confirmed that Serbian negotiators are exclusively discussing the sale of NIS to the Russians currently. Bajatovic told B92 on Sunday that Russia has agreed to abolish the monopoly on fuel derivatives by 2010 and that the situation in the talks is not better than it was after the meetings last week, when some members of Serbia’s negotiating team left. “Belgrade negotiating NIS sale only” “Negotiations are a dynamic category. It is true that the stance of the Russian said is that there is no need for a general contract and that they see such a contract in the agreement signed between the two states, which is legitimate. We were not satisfied with that when the talks began,” Bajatovic, SPS, said. “The platform about this contract has been confirmed, and there would be three contracts in it regulating the sale of NIS, construction of the South Stream gas pipeline through Serbia and the Bantaski Dvor storage facility. It is true that they have not agreed to that and that we have stumbled in finding a way to tie together all these agreements,” he said. Bajatovic said that at this moment, there are only talks regarding the sale of Serbia's state-owned oil company NIS to Russia's Gazprom, and that there has been some progress made, adding that “more good will exists” for negotiating. He added that Serbia does not need guarantees that the gas pipeline and storage facility will be built because the state agreement – signed in Moscow on Jan. 25 and ratified in the Serbian parliament since – remains the “highest level legal act.” Bajatovic said that Serbia can file alawsuit against Russia should any problems arise. When asked whether Serbia would be "allowed to do that", he answered with the question, “Is Serbia allowed to files suits against countries that buy Serbian companies?” Bajatovic did not answer directly regarding what would happened specifically if Russia decided not to go ahead with building the pipeline. On the other hand, Economy Minister Mladjan Dinkic's State Secretary Nebojsa Ciric, who left the negotiation team last week, said that a separate contract needs to be signed for the pipeline and storage facility. He said that "if an agreement and contract were the same thing, they would not have different names". He claims that he and other G17 Plus party officials left the team because the Serbian platform of the talks was changed and the negotiations "went from being commercial to political". “I must say that the Russian side did say honestly that they do not wish to tie together the sale of NIS with the pipeline and Banatski Dvor storage facility,” Ciric said. “We have come to a point where this week the official negotiation platform of the Serbian government has been essentially changed. We have reached a situation where they are insisting on signing only one contract, for the sale of NIS,” Ciric said.

“Belgrade negotiating NIS sale only”

“Negotiations are a dynamic category. It is true that the stance of the Russian said is that there is no need for a general contract and that they see such a contract in the agreement signed between the two states, which is legitimate. We were not satisfied with that when the talks began,” Bajatović, SPS, said.

“The platform about this contract has been confirmed, and there would be three contracts in it regulating the sale of NIS, construction of the South Stream gas pipeline through Serbia and the Bantaski Dvor storage facility. It is true that they have not agreed to that and that we have stumbled in finding a way to tie together all these agreements,” he said.

Bajatović said that at this moment, there are only talks regarding the sale of Serbia's state-owned oil company NIS to Russia's Gazprom, and that there has been some progress made, adding that “more good will exists” for negotiating.

He added that Serbia does not need guarantees that the gas pipeline and storage facility will be built because the state agreement – signed in Moscow on Jan. 25 and ratified in the Serbian parliament since – remains the “highest level legal act.”

Bajatović said that Serbia can file alawsuit against Russia should any problems arise. When asked whether Serbia would be "allowed to do that", he answered with the question, “Is Serbia allowed to files suits against countries that buy Serbian companies?”

Bajatović did not answer directly regarding what would happened specifically if Russia decided not to go ahead with building the pipeline.

On the other hand, Economy Minister Mlađan Dinkić's State Secretary Nebojša Ćirić, who left the negotiation team last week, said that a separate contract needs to be signed for the pipeline and storage facility.

He said that "if an agreement and contract were the same thing, they would not have different names".

He claims that he and other G17 Plus party officials left the team because the Serbian platform of the talks was changed and the negotiations "went from being commercial to political".

“I must say that the Russian side did say honestly that they do not wish to tie together the sale of NIS with the pipeline and Banatski Dvor storage facility,” Ćirić said.

“We have come to a point where this week the official negotiation platform of the Serbian government has been essentially changed. We have reached a situation where they are insisting on signing only one contract, for the sale of NIS,” Ćirić said.