Leaders of ruling parties meet in Belgrade

BELGRADE The leaders of three parties making up Serbia's ruling coalition, Ivica Dacic (SPS), Aleksandar Vucic (SNS) and Mladjan Dinkic (URS), held a meeting on Tuesday. The participants in the meeting did not address journalists after it was concluded, but reports said that "agreement was reached on the future work of the government". Leaders of ruling parties meet in Belgrade B92 has learned that Vucic insisted on his SNS to be "respected" appropriate to its status as the strongest party in the country. The meeting focused on "key strategic questions related to Serbia's future". Earlier in the day, it was reported that one of the reasons for the meeting was the decision of the SPS and another government-level ally, the United Regions of Serbia (URS), to team up with the Democrats (DS) in the town of Smederevska Palanka, and thus remove the SNS from power there. This reportedly angered the Progressives, while Vucic was quoted as saying that "it would not go without consequences". On the other hand, Dacic on Monday told reporters that the problems in the ruling coalition did exist, but were exaggerated, and added that his cabinet was not about to collapse as a consequence. The local-level coalitions will be one of the topics of the meeting, but Dacic did not reveal what other issues he intended to discuss with Vucic. Meanwhile, SPS official and MP Branko Ruzic told journalists that the SNS had not yet officially requested that the local government in Belgrade be changed as well - where a coalition led by the Democrats (DS) is in power - but that the Socialists were "ready and open to talk" if such a request were to be made. Ruzic expects that Tuesday's meeting between Dacic, Vucic and Dinkic "will relax the problem, if there is one at all": "I don't see how local self-governments and local coalitions could be more important than state issues, such as Kosovo, and important state infrastructural projects and investments." He noted that the SPS presidency decided that local authorities could be reshuffled "everywhere where there is the political will and mathematical possibility" for them to mirror the state-level coalition, and stressed that as far as the SPS was concerned, "the political will is there without any question". Asked to name the municipalities where such "mathematical possibility" existed, Ruzic mentioned Leskovac, Sabac, Zajecar, Knic, Sombor, and Kursumlija. Ivica Dacic and Aleksandar Vucic are seen during a cabinet meeting (Tanjug, file) B92 Beta

Leaders of ruling parties meet in Belgrade

B92 has learned that Vučić insisted on his SNS to be "respected" appropriate to its status as the strongest party in the country.

The meeting focused on "key strategic questions related to Serbia's future".

Earlier in the day, it was reported that one of the reasons for the meeting was the decision of the SPS and another government-level ally, the United Regions of Serbia (URS), to team up with the Democrats (DS) in the town of Smederevska Palanka, and thus remove the SNS from power there.

This reportedly angered the Progressives, while Vučić was quoted as saying that "it would not go without consequences".

On the other hand, Dačić on Monday told reporters that the problems in the ruling coalition did exist, but were exaggerated, and added that his cabinet was not about to collapse as a consequence.

The local-level coalitions will be one of the topics of the meeting, but Dačić did not reveal what other issues he intended to discuss with Vučić.

Meanwhile, SPS official and MP Branko Ružić told journalists that the SNS had not yet officially requested that the local government in Belgrade be changed as well - where a coalition led by the Democrats (DS) is in power - but that the Socialists were "ready and open to talk" if such a request were to be made.

Ružić expects that Tuesday's meeting between Dačić, Vučić and Dinkić "will relax the problem, if there is one at all":

"I don't see how local self-governments and local coalitions could be more important than state issues, such as Kosovo, and important state infrastructural projects and investments."

He noted that the SPS presidency decided that local authorities could be reshuffled "everywhere where there is the political will and mathematical possibility" for them to mirror the state-level coalition, and stressed that as far as the SPS was concerned, "the political will is there without any question".

Asked to name the municipalities where such "mathematical possibility" existed, Ružić mentioned Leskovac, Šabac, Zaječar, Knić, Sombor, and Kuršumlija.