Tadić: There will be no new conditions

President Boris Tadic says that he has received guarantees that recognizing Kosovo will not be a condition put before Belgrade before joining the EU. Tadic told Vecernje Novosti daily that Serbia has become "a key and unavoidable political factor in the Balkans", and that this was confirmed to him by "officials from the world's leading countries". Tadic: There will be no new conditions Tadic also revealed that he trusts U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden and French President Nicolas Sarkozy who said that Serbia will not have to recognize Kosovo as independent in order to join the EU. "There is no doubt we do not share the same position over Kosovo's status with France and the U.S. But I have also received unequivocal assurances that nobody will blackmail Serbia with recognizing Kosovo. Just as entering NATO will not be a condition for our EU membership," the president was quoted as saying. He also said that he was convinced that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) – which is looking into the legality of the ethnic Albanians' unilateral proclamation – will conclude that it was not in line with international law, and that he sees no legal argument that would produce a different conclusion by the court. Tadic stated that "some countries have promised to take into account the ICJ ruling and reexamine their recognitions of Kosovo", should that ruling be in Belgrade's favor. "I am convinced that what is more important is that a possibility of new negotiations will open up then. Serbia is ready to at any moment sit at the negotiating table with Kosovo's Albanians again, and find a lasting and sustainable solution." Tadic said that the province's partition "is not being considered", that Serbia "has done everything" to ensure safety of the citizens in Kosovo, but added he is "not satisfied with what has been done so far". Asked about Serbia's EU candidate application, he said that the Netherlands is an obstacle to submitting it, since this country does not accept to have the SAA ratified because of the case of former Bosnian Serb military leader Ratko Mladic. "We are doing everything to solve that problem. On the other hand, European parties and their leaders are avoiding talking about expansion in the election year, due to the crisis. When these processes have finalized in the fall, I'm convinced that accelerated EU enlargement will be approached in a much more flexible manner, above all to the Western Balkans," said Tadic. The country's regionalization, he continued, should remove "several decades of Serbia's uneven regional development". According to him, it is "nonsensical" that some doubt regionalization in fact means territorial division and the country's disintegration, and added that regionalization is used to counter any disintegration. Asked about the draft Vojvodina statute and the accompanying law, Tadic said that their adoption is also a confirmation of an obligation stemming from the Constitution. "It should have been done within a deadline, based on the Law on Implementation of the Constitution, but that deadline has passed. And that is not a good thing. However, it would have been much worse had we adopted the statute and the law that are not in line with the Constitution or that would not be sufficiently functional." He said that these acts will be passed "within a reasonable time" and that they will be "another confirmation of the country's unity". "Nothing will happen that is not in line with the Constitution, that is not functional. The 1974 Constitution did not contribute to the stability and repeating of that mistake must be avoided at any cost. This is about Serbia's regionalization process, that starts with the statute and the law, and ends with political reform that will probably take place at the end of the mandate of this government or my presidential mandate." Tadic also said that the statute debate will not threaten the stability of the ruling coalition.

Tadić: There will be no new conditions

Tadić also revealed that he trusts U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden and French President Nicolas Sarkozy who said that Serbia will not have to recognize Kosovo as independent in order to join the EU.

"There is no doubt we do not share the same position over Kosovo's status with France and the U.S. But I have also received unequivocal assurances that nobody will blackmail Serbia with recognizing Kosovo. Just as entering NATO will not be a condition for our EU membership," the president was quoted as saying.

He also said that he was convinced that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) – which is looking into the legality of the ethnic Albanians' unilateral proclamation – will conclude that it was not in line with international law, and that he sees no legal argument that would produce a different conclusion by the court.

Tadić stated that "some countries have promised to take into account the ICJ ruling and reexamine their recognitions of Kosovo", should that ruling be in Belgrade's favor.

"I am convinced that what is more important is that a possibility of new negotiations will open up then. Serbia is ready to at any moment sit at the negotiating table with Kosovo's Albanians again, and find a lasting and sustainable solution."

Tadić said that the province's partition "is not being considered", that Serbia "has done everything" to ensure safety of the citizens in Kosovo, but added he is "not satisfied with what has been done so far".

Asked about Serbia's EU candidate application, he said that the Netherlands is an obstacle to submitting it, since this country does not accept to have the SAA ratified because of the case of former Bosnian Serb military leader Ratko Mladić.

"We are doing everything to solve that problem. On the other hand, European parties and their leaders are avoiding talking about expansion in the election year, due to the crisis. When these processes have finalized in the fall, I'm convinced that accelerated EU enlargement will be approached in a much more flexible manner, above all to the Western Balkans," said Tadić.

The country's regionalization, he continued, should remove "several decades of Serbia's uneven regional development".

According to him, it is "nonsensical" that some doubt regionalization in fact means territorial division and the country's disintegration, and added that regionalization is used to counter any disintegration.

Asked about the draft Vojvodina statute and the accompanying law, Tadić said that their adoption is also a confirmation of an obligation stemming from the Constitution.

"It should have been done within a deadline, based on the Law on Implementation of the Constitution, but that deadline has passed. And that is not a good thing. However, it would have been much worse had we adopted the statute and the law that are not in line with the Constitution or that would not be sufficiently functional."

He said that these acts will be passed "within a reasonable time" and that they will be "another confirmation of the country's unity".

"Nothing will happen that is not in line with the Constitution, that is not functional. The 1974 Constitution did not contribute to the stability and repeating of that mistake must be avoided at any cost. This is about Serbia's regionalization process, that starts with the statute and the law, and ends with political reform that will probably take place at the end of the mandate of this government or my presidential mandate."

Tadić also said that the statute debate will not threaten the stability of the ruling coalition.