Serbia will be EU-ready in 2012

Serbia will be EU-ready in 2012

B92:  Stabilization and Association Agreement negotiations started in October 2005.  Since then, in what areas has Serbia progressed the most? 

Miščević:  The major emphasis of the negotiations is in the area of so called economic ministries.  This means the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations, the Ministry of Trade, the Ministry of Economy, and the Ministry of Capital Investment, because all the elements of the Stabilization and Association Agreements are basically intended to create a structure which will be able to create a free trade area within the European Union over some transition period. 

Our suggestion is a six year transition period, by the end of which we will have to ban all our customs duties, and any equivalent measures, for all trade with the European Union states. B92: And from when would the six years start?

Miščević:  That’s six years after we sign the SAA, and not when the agreement comes into force, because there will be a very long and possibly a very difficult procedure of ratifying the agreement.  Especially as it has to be ratified by the European Parliament and all the member states. 

In turn, there is a solution, called the interim agreement. And that interim agreement will be in force shortly after we sign the SAA.  And from that time we will start calculating those six years.  That’s why it is very important to start, to restart in fact, the negotiations for the SAA and to sign it very soon in order to start calculating the time.

B92:  The negotiations have temporarily stopped, but in regards to what had been accomplished up to that point, what were the areas that seemed to appear the most difficult for Serbia? 

Miščević:  The most challenging area is definitely agriculture. The community standards in the area of agriculture is the biggest challenge. 

The second biggest issue is in the area of environmental protection, but this is not as much the subject of the negotiations as it will be for negotiating future membership.  So it is too early to discuss environmental standards.

But the standards for agriculture, for competition, for international trade and for the protection of foreign direct investments - those are standards that will be applicable to Serbia especially once we’ve signed the SAA.

Role of the SEIO

B92:  Looking into this coming year, in what areas will the SEIO specifically be focusing? 

Miščević:  Well to back up and explain the role of the SEIO a bit first, the office is the technical body, not the ministry, of the government of Serbia. 

We are responsible for coordinating ministries and other bodies within the Serbian government in achieving the priorities listed in the document known as the European Partnership document.  That is the document which was created jointly by the European Commission and by the ministries in the Serbian government that lists all necessary priorities in order to achieve European standards in all the areas with which we are dealing.

So we are not the body that implements, but we facilitate.  We monitor the process, and of course we report the progress to the government, to the Serbian Parliament and to the European Commission.  So we are something like a bridge between the government and the European institutions.

B92:  Dictated by both the Serbian government and the European Commission, what will be the main areas that the SEIO will most closely monitor in the near future? 

Miščević:  The economy.  We are in the particular phase of the process of European integration in which the emphasis will be on achieving economic standards, achieving a stable market economy.  But once we start negotiating membership, all other areas will go under scrutiny in the same manner that the economic area is today. B92:  Is that when other main issues generally associated with European integration, such as human rights, will be examined?

Miščević:  That kind of issue falls into the area of political criteria that is closely observed by both the European Union and the Council of Europe, and it is one of the conditions in order to proceed in the process of European Integration. 

So there are, of course, political criteria and political priorities that we will have to follow, like the protection of human and minority rights and the creation and the maintenance of stable democratic institutions.

A constitution was one of the biggest conditions.  Now we do have the Constitution, which is a very important step forward. 

And then there is full cooperation with the ICTY, which is not only an international obligation, but can also be seen as an indicator of achieving rule of law here in Serbia. 

There is then also justice and home affairs and the fight against organized crime, which is also necessary in achieving the full liberalization of the visa regime. 

There are a lot of political criteria which are very closely observed and assessed by the European Commission.

Impact of the elections

B92:  How do you see the recent parliamentary elections effecting the future of Serbia and its progress towards European integration? 

Miščević:  First of all I think we can all be very, not happy, but satisfied with the fact that two-thirds of our voters voted for democratic parties, for the parties of democratic orientation.

Those parties have their differences regarding the process. There is still no strong political consensus regarding the process of European integration. When I say that there is no strong consensus I am thinking about the steps that have to be taken and the pace of that process, and the understanding that this is not a process driven by the European Union but rather an internal process of reform which will lead towards members in the EU. 

Membership will be the final stamp that those reforms have been preformed.  That’s the very important element – achieving real and genuine consensus on the issue. That will be, in my opinion, a very important element for the new government to establish. 

Those democratic forces within Serbia do have a very positive attitude towards the process of European integration.  I am very confident that the process can accelerate in future years, especially as we know that the European Commission and member states think that we do have the capacities not only to eventually implement the SAA but also to catch up with other countries, to progress even faster. B92:  In regard to your comment about the political parties, the European Union was thrown around a lot during the campaigns. While the European Union seemed to be the end goal for the various democratic parties, to what degree do you think the parties used the European Union as a symbol for a better future versus actually comprehending the steps that need to be taken and the approach that needs to be used in the present? 

Miščević:  There are differences of course in the various political parties.  This may be an exaggeration, but I think that European integration had a very important role in the elections because it was forced by the people of Serbia, who are so heavily pro-European.

According to our polls, 70% of our people are for the future membership of Serbia in the European Union. So if you compare it to the election results you can see similar numbers voting for the democratic bloc. 

There are differences between the political parties.  The government that exists right now has achieved a lot in that process.  They achieved the opening of the SAA negotiations.

But other political parties also supported that process.  DS, even as an opposition party in parliament, supported the process.  That was a very important element for the process as such. 

Then G17+, of course, has been one of the greatest supporters in the process of reforms that will lead to membership.  So there are differences, especially in the pace, because some of them think it could be faster.  Some think we need much more time to solve some of our internal – I am speaking about territorial – issues, and only then to go deeper into the process.  But basically there is no difference in regard to the view that Serbia’s future lies in EU membership.

Integration timeline

B92:  For the moment the ICTY issue is clearly holding up the negotiating process, but outside of that, if the issue was to be resolved, what kind of time frame could Serbia expect for EU membership? 

Miščević:  This is why I’m always speaking about the process of European integration, not the process of joining the European Union. 

This issue was also very vivid in the election campaigns.  Integration is an internal process, a process of internal reforms that will lead towards membership.  That’s why we calculate time according to our internal reform process. And, according to our national strategy, the year 2012 will be the year when we shall be ready for membership.  That means that in the year 2012 we will be ready to assume the obligations of being a member of the European Union. 

The goal is not just to become a member, but to become a full fledged member, who can bring something to the European Union.  That’s very important for us. 

So we do not perceive the EU, that is if I may also assess by the election campaign, as it is widely perceived by some of the political parties.  We see this as an internal job. This is our homework that has to be achieved, to be prepared.  We want to be somebody who brings something to the EU - not just to see the EU as a shangri-la, but to achieve the shangri-la in Serbia even before that. 

Of course we are interested in becoming a member of the European Union, because that will bring the citizens of Serbia the possibility to move in all areas of the European Union.  That will include us in one of the biggest markets in the world. That will also give us a better standing in the globalized world - not being small and closed off.  So there are in fact many benefits to becoming a member of the European Union, but the bulk of the work has to be achieved before becoming a member.

Regional context

B92: What kinds of things do you see Serbia being able to bring to the EU?

Miščević:  Even now Serbia is perceived as a leader of this region that we are a part of.  As the biggest country of the so called Western Balkan region, we are very important for the stability and the security of the region. 

But we also offer the potential for trade.  The potential of the Serbian market is very big, and that could bring some value to the European Union.

B92:  In regards to the region, Bulgaria and Romania have just joined the European Union as of January first.  What can Serbia learn from their process, and does it change the situation now for Serbia to have these close neighbors as European Union member states? 

Miščević:  My opinion is that it’s a very good development for the larger situation.  It means that at some point in time, of course according to our merits and the achievements of all the countries of the Western Balkans, the Western Balkan countries will undoubtedly become members of the EU.  That is one very important element. 

Then the second important element is that we can learn from them.  In this process the only positive element of being the last in the Stabilization and Agreement process is that you can copy and use bad and good examples of countries that achieved membership before you. And yes w coe do learn a lot from Bulgaria and Romania, and Hungary and Slovenia, and even Croatia who is advancing in the process right now.

One of the areas that will create a problem is that we now have borders with the European Union, so we now have the Schengen visa.  We had that with Romania even before they joined the European Union, but Bulgaria was also recently compelled to introduce a visa regime with Serbia and that will be a difference.  Most significantly free movement will be limited, and customs will be introduced for some goods. The goal again lies in the SAA and the idea that those goods will become custom free once the SAA is applied.

I’m speaking for example about Dacia, a very popular car here, that is produced in Romania.   Our citizens could import those cars without custom duties.  Now they will have to pay customs duties even for these cars.

So the visa regime and some import customs duties will change the situation, but then we have the positive element that we will have two more member states of the European Union supporting not only Serbia but all Western Balkan countries in their way towards the European Union.  That’s an enormously important element.  They are our closest neighbors.  They not only understand the facts and figures, but they also understand the perspectives.

B92:  Last month the Central European Free Trade Agreement of 2006 was signed.  What does that say about the economic readiness of Serbia for European integration? 

Miščević:  CEFTA 2006 was the top structure after having and concluding a network of bilateral free trade agreements in the area of South Eastern Europe.

We had a network of 31 bilateral free trade agreements signed up to the time we signed CEFTA.  It was very obvious that this network could be successfully upgraded by a structure which will have, not bilateral networks, but rather one agreement for the area, for the countries of South Eastern Europe together with Bulgaria and Romania. But they have now ceased to be members of CEFTA as they are members of the European Union of course. 

That’s the finalization of one of the main prerequisites in the Stabilization and Association process: regional cooperation.  Regional cooperation in trade is one of the very important elements of the learning process - to try to achieve regional cooperation and integration before those countries enter the EU. So it’s one type of training for these countries, especially in the area of trade, in order to prepare themselves for one big market, which is the common market of Europe. It will give the Serbian economy the opportunity to advance. 

We are now experiencing very positive economic development results, and CEFTA will give us the opportunity to export goods which are known in the Western Balkan countries.  They are known for their quality and for being low priced products.  And they are products that people of other regional countries are accustomed to.  I’m speaking of both industrial and agricultural goods. B92:  How does the process of finalizing the Kosovo status come into play in regards to European integration? 

Miščević:  Up to now we did not have to deal with the final status of Kosovo.  When I say “we” I mean people dealing with the process of European integration. 

First of all Kosovo has had its own so called tracking mechanism since 2003.  So the European Commission is monitoring the process of internal reforms in Kosovo, the process of reforms organized and fulfilled by the authorities there. 

Kosovo was also not the subject of the SAA negotiations.  Because it is very important when discussing the SAA to define the limits of your jurisdiction.  And Serbian authorities definitely do not have jurisdiction and power over the territories of Kosovo. So that means that the resolution of the Security Council 1244 is applied as that type of solution. 

One very important element is that both negotiations – on SAA and on the future Kosovo status - started at the same time, so there was room to depict the situation as “either Kosovo or the EU”, which was not the case.  We are struggling with this.  We are always sending the same message “there is no bargaining between Kosovo and the process of European Union integration”.  That possibility was never open or suggested to us. That’s very important to know. 

What will be the solution? Of course we will see what Mr. Ahtisaari  and the Security Council and the negotiations find on the issue.  But I’m confident that both Serbia and the European Union will have an understanding, as they have had up till now, regarding the specific situation of Kosovo, and the necessity of proceeding with the process of European integration to find some compromise in those two areas.  But the major and the most important element is the idea that there is no bargaining with the process of integration and for Kosovo and vice versa.

Visa Facilitation

B92: Could you tell us a little more about visa facilitation of Serbian citizens who want to enter the EU? 

Miščević:  Because of the elections last week, visa facilitation negotiations were not very visible.  We had the second technical round of negotiations in regards to visa facilitation and the readmission agreement with the European Commission.  We are the first of the Western Balkan countries to do so.  Others include Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Albania.  They are also negotiating those agreements. 

Up till now I think this is one of the most important steps. Members of the European Union have an understanding of why it is very important for the citizens of Western Balkan countries to travel easier.

They need to be able to exchange knowledge and information and to learn something new. And we especially put the emphasis on young people – students and pupils.  It is very important that young pupils from primary and secondary schools have the opportunity to go abroad, not only to learn the languages of the member states of the European Union, but also to see how it is to be and to live in the EU, to learn about European values and to see and observe closely what we need in order to be a modern and normal European Union country. 

That is the primary goal for why we are so very involved in the facilitation. The other issue is readmission.  There is a large portion of people illegally living in EU member states who have Serbian Citizenship, due to the fact that during the 1990s, 120,000 of our citizens left the country to try to find a better life in the EU.  But some of them did not gain legal status there and have to be sent back to Serbia and to other countries of the Western Balkans.

We are now discussing, with the European Union, an agreement in order to proceed with the readmission procedure with all countries of the European Union. 

B92:  And how did last week’s talks go?

It was very successful.  It was assessed as successful not only by us, but also by the European Commission.  We are dictating the pace of those negotiations because we are the first of the Western Balkan countries to have this second round of negotiations.

About 90% of both agreements were negotiated and there is a deal on other issues.  There are several issues that have to be dealt with on a horizontal level.  For example, let’s say someone is a citizen of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, who did not apply or receive citizenship from the states created after the dissolution of the former Yugoslavia.  The solution for those people should be the same as it is for all countries in the Western Balkans, excluding Albania.  That type of issue remains to be solved.

We expect the third and last round at the beginning of march.  That will be the round when we will initialize both agreements.  And the signing ceremony for both agreements will be sometime, according to the time table of the European Commission, in the third week of March, for all countries of the Western Balkans. 

It is very soon, because the procedure afterwards in the EU can be a very long one.  It needs the approval of the European Parliament and then within the parliament you have a large number of MPs with different attitudes and different ideas, so I expect a very long debate on this.  On our part, we will proceed with the ratification immediately.