“No consensus on Serbia’s EU progress”

The Czech Republic supports the unfreezing of the Interim Trade Agreement between the EU and Serbia, but there is no consensus on the issue within the Union. “Nationally, we support the unfreezing of the interim agreement, but since we are presiding over the EU we have to respect the fact that there is no consensus on full cooperation with Serbia. I think that Serbia is the one that can really help the process by arresting the two remaining Hague fugitives,” Czech Ambassador to Serbia Hana Hubackova said. “No consensus on Serbia’s EU progress” She and the Swedish ambassador to Belgrade, Krister Bringeus, whose country will preside over the EU in the second half of 2009, said that integrating the Western Balkans was one of the EU’s priorities in 2009. Bringeus said that there was a clear vision for Serbia as an EU member-state, and that Serbia had done a lot in cooperation with the Hague Tribunal, but that the two remaining fugitives had to be caught. Hubackova said that liberalization of the visa regime was an important process and that Serbia had made a lot of progress, but that a lot more needed to be done. The European Commission’s head of delegation in Belgrade, Josep Lloveras, said that uneven progress had been achieved in the four chapters on visa liberalization talks.

“No consensus on Serbia’s EU progress”

She and the Swedish ambassador to Belgrade, Krister Bringeus, whose country will preside over the EU in the second half of 2009, said that integrating the Western Balkans was one of the EU’s priorities in 2009.

Bringeus said that there was a clear vision for Serbia as an EU member-state, and that Serbia had done a lot in cooperation with the Hague Tribunal, but that the two remaining fugitives had to be caught.

Hubackova said that liberalization of the visa regime was an important process and that Serbia had made a lot of progress, but that a lot more needed to be done.

The European Commission’s head of delegation in Belgrade, Josep Lloveras, said that uneven progress had been achieved in the four chapters on visa liberalization talks.