Serbian, German officials agree: Date is not important

BELGRADE A visiting German official said on Friday that as far as Serbia was concerned, "it was not the date for accession talks with the EU that was important". Instead, stated Gunther Krichbaum, chairman of the German parliament's European Affairs Committee, it was important for reforms to continue. Serbian, German officials agree: Date is not important He added that Germany as a whole and its parliament "saw Serbia on a path to the EU": "To avoid misunderstandings - the Bundestag (parliament) and Germany see Serbia on a path toward the EU. When I say on a path, it means in the EU some day. On this path, Serbia must take certain steps on its own, but it is important that you know the necessary support is there." Krichbaum made the statements during a news conference after a meeting with Serbia's Deputy Prime Minister in charge of EU integration Suzana Grubjesic. Commenting on statements of Serbian officials that Serbia would not rush into the EU at all costs and would not give up on Kosovo, he said the pace of the accession process depended on Serbia alone. "We cannot decide this from the outside, nor would we want to. It is up to the country to decide whether and when it wants to join the EU. If it wants to join, then it must have good-neighborly relations with all countries," said Krichbaum. He cited the example of Cyprus which was admitted to the EU with the Cyprus issue still unresolved. "We do not want another Cyprus, which is why conflict situations should be solved first in order to prevent problems later. This is why the EU and Germany want to see a solution here," Kirchbaum concluded. Grubjesic said Serbia would officially receive the European Commission progress report on Wednesday, when Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule visits Belgrade. She reiterated that "we should be realistic and Serbia's chances of getting a date by the end of the year are slim," but this does not mean the government is not working to achieve this. "Our next chance is in the spring of next year, but we will need to take some courageous steps by then," said Grubjesic. Grubjesic (R) meets with Krichbaum EU requirements The main political requirement for getting a start date for the EU entry talks is a continuation of the dialogue with Pristina, and implementation of the agreements reached so far, Tanjug learned at Suzana Grubjesic's office on Thursday evening. In its report on Serbia's progress, the European Commission (EC) will give full support to the government to continue with the reforms, especially taking into account that the government was formed only two months ago, and that the report covers the last 12 months, the deputy prime minister's office said. "The report will be officially released on October 10, and then we will be able to comment on and analyze it. What we can say at this moment, and what everybody knows, as that has been made clear several times - the main political requirement for obtaining a start date is a continuation of the dialogue with Pristina, and implementation of the agreements reached so far," Tanjug learned. The report will not contain any surprises, as "it is the real, objective analysis of what was done during the previous year in all domains, and what should be done next, in the following year in particular,"it was underlined. The EC report, which Tanjug has seen, notes that Serbia will get a start date for the EU accession talks once it meets the key criteria related to Kosovo. Tanjug

Serbian, German officials agree: Date is not important

He added that Germany as a whole and its parliament "saw Serbia on a path to the EU":

"To avoid misunderstandings - the Bundestag (parliament) and Germany see Serbia on a path toward the EU. When I say on a path, it means in the EU some day. On this path, Serbia must take certain steps on its own, but it is important that you know the necessary support is there."

Krichbaum made the statements during a news conference after a meeting with Serbia's Deputy Prime Minister in charge of EU integration Suzana Grubješić.

Commenting on statements of Serbian officials that Serbia would not rush into the EU at all costs and would not give up on Kosovo, he said the pace of the accession process depended on Serbia alone.

"We cannot decide this from the outside, nor would we want to. It is up to the country to decide whether and when it wants to join the EU. If it wants to join, then it must have good-neighborly relations with all countries," said Krichbaum.

He cited the example of Cyprus which was admitted to the EU with the Cyprus issue still unresolved.

"We do not want another Cyprus, which is why conflict situations should be solved first in order to prevent problems later. This is why the EU and Germany want to see a solution here," Kirchbaum concluded.

Grubješić said Serbia would officially receive the European Commission progress report on Wednesday, when Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule visits Belgrade.

She reiterated that "we should be realistic and Serbia's chances of getting a date by the end of the year are slim," but this does not mean the government is not working to achieve this.

"Our next chance is in the spring of next year, but we will need to take some courageous steps by then," said Grubješić.

EU requirements

The main political requirement for getting a start date for the EU entry talks is a continuation of the dialogue with Pristina, and implementation of the agreements reached so far, Tanjug learned at Suzana Grubješić's office on Thursday evening.

In its report on Serbia's progress, the European Commission (EC) will give full support to the government to continue with the reforms, especially taking into account that the government was formed only two months ago, and that the report covers the last 12 months, the deputy prime minister's office said.

"The report will be officially released on October 10, and then we will be able to comment on and analyze it. What we can say at this moment, and what everybody knows, as that has been made clear several times - the main political requirement for obtaining a start date is a continuation of the dialogue with Priština, and implementation of the agreements reached so far," Tanjug learned.

The report will not contain any surprises, as "it is the real, objective analysis of what was done during the previous year in all domains, and what should be done next, in the following year in particular,"it was underlined.

The EC report, which Tanjug has seen, notes that Serbia will get a start date for the EU accession talks once it meets the key criteria related to Kosovo.