Serbian officials hold meetings with Italian FM

BELGRADE Serbia deserves to get a date for the start of EU membership talks, Italian Foreign Minister Emma Bonino said late on Tuesday in Belgrade. Italy will do everything to see Brussels state a positive opinion about the initiatives and measures Serbia has made on its EU path, she stated after her meeting Serbian Foreign Minister Ivan Mrkic. Serbian officials hold meetings with Italian FM "We believe that after signing the Brussels agreement and taking the implementation measures, Serbia deserves the date for the beginning of the EU accession talks," said Bonino. Bonino also said that she believes that Serbia will not be pressed with any new requirements for obtaining the date, in either legal or political terms. "What we are fighting for is no new conditions," said Bonino. Bonino added that it is an EU's historic mission to unite all the European families, and it is therefore vital to obtain the date for the start of negotiations as the accession process is important both for Serbia and for the whole of Europe. Asked by an Italian journalist about the Serbs in northern Kosovo having hard time accepting the Brussels agreement, Minister Mrkic said that the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of that which the Serbian government agreed upon in Brussels on April 19, and are "slowly accepting it." Mrkic pointed to the importance of Minister Bonino's visit in the view of the fact that it is her first official bilateral visit to any country. He said that Italy has been a proven friend of Serbia's throughout history, but even more so today, announcing that the two countries' governments will get more coordinated through a series of ministerial meetings over the next few days. Mrkic announced talks on bilateral schemes taking place at a joint session of the two governments in fall this year. Bonino said that the investments by Italian companies in Serbia and an increase in the trade between Serbia and Italy testify to the good cooperation between the two countries, especially in the times when everyone is facing difficulties in the economic and financial spheres. Business operations of 500 Italian enterprises in Serbia is a proof of the intensity of the cooperation, said the Italian foreign minister, adding that the cooperation in the field of culture and civil society is next to be stepped up. Emma Bonino and Ivan Mrkic (Tanjug) Serbia has done "everything to get date" Serbia has done everything to get a date for the start of EU membership talks and the European Council will make a big mistake if it does not send a positive signal to Serbia for everything that it has done, Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic said during a meeting he had with Italian Foreign Minister Emma Bonino in Belgrade on Tuesday. “This is important not just because the agreement was reached with Pristina, but also because positive steps have been made in maintaining peace and stability in the region,” the president's press office quoted Nikolic as saying. Nikolic said that Serbia has done everything to get the date and that nothing particularly new will occur within a month or six months when it comes to meeting the requirements, adding that it is not fair that some countries in the region receive encouragement while achieving much less than Serbia in every respect. The president also said that the relations between the two countries are friendly and sincere and thanked Italy for its sincere commitment to achieving the date for the start of the accession negotiations with the EU. Bonino, he said, conveyed positive impressions about the friendship between the two countries and stressed that Italy will do its best to achieve the date. This is important not only for Serbia but also for its role in the region, said Bonino, stressing that the two countries have very good relations in the political and economic terms, with room for further improvement in the field of culture and civil society. PM "expects positive decision" Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic stated on Tuesday that Serbia expects the European Council to adopt a positive decision on the initiation of Serbia's EU accession talks at the session scheduled for June 28. By its moves, Serbia gave an encouragement to its partners to back its EU path, Dacic told reporters in the Serbian government building after the meeting with Italian Foreign Minister Emma Bonino. The prime minister explained that the encouraging moves include the signing of the agreement on normalisation of relations with Pristina and its implementation. Dacic said that the Lithuanian parliament ratified the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with Serbia on Tuesday and that Lithuania was the only country which had not ratified the agreement with Serbia until now. The prime minister said that Italy and Serbia share excellent relations and expressed gratitude to the Italian minister for the support of the Italian government to Serbia's EU integration. Tanjug

Serbian officials hold meetings with Italian FM

"We believe that after signing the Brussels agreement and taking the implementation measures, Serbia deserves the date for the beginning of the EU accession talks," said Bonino.

Bonino also said that she believes that Serbia will not be pressed with any new requirements for obtaining the date, in either legal or political terms.

"What we are fighting for is no new conditions," said Bonino.

Bonino added that it is an EU's historic mission to unite all the European families, and it is therefore vital to obtain the date for the start of negotiations as the accession process is important both for Serbia and for the whole of Europe.

Asked by an Italian journalist about the Serbs in northern Kosovo having hard time accepting the Brussels agreement, Minister Mrkić said that the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of that which the Serbian government agreed upon in Brussels on April 19, and are "slowly accepting it."

Mrkić pointed to the importance of Minister Bonino's visit in the view of the fact that it is her first official bilateral visit to any country.

He said that Italy has been a proven friend of Serbia's throughout history, but even more so today, announcing that the two countries' governments will get more coordinated through a series of ministerial meetings over the next few days.

Mrkić announced talks on bilateral schemes taking place at a joint session of the two governments in fall this year.

Bonino said that the investments by Italian companies in Serbia and an increase in the trade between Serbia and Italy testify to the good cooperation between the two countries, especially in the times when everyone is facing difficulties in the economic and financial spheres.

Business operations of 500 Italian enterprises in Serbia is a proof of the intensity of the cooperation, said the Italian foreign minister, adding that the cooperation in the field of culture and civil society is next to be stepped up.

Serbia has done "everything to get date"

Serbia has done everything to get a date for the start of EU membership talks and the European Council will make a big mistake if it does not send a positive signal to Serbia for everything that it has done, Serbian President Tomislav Nikolić said during a meeting he had with Italian Foreign Minister Emma Bonino in Belgrade on Tuesday.

“This is important not just because the agreement was reached with Priština, but also because positive steps have been made in maintaining peace and stability in the region,” the president's press office quoted Nikolić as saying.

Nikolić said that Serbia has done everything to get the date and that nothing particularly new will occur within a month or six months when it comes to meeting the requirements, adding that it is not fair that some countries in the region receive encouragement while achieving much less than Serbia in every respect.

The president also said that the relations between the two countries are friendly and sincere and thanked Italy for its sincere commitment to achieving the date for the start of the accession negotiations with the EU.

Bonino, he said, conveyed positive impressions about the friendship between the two countries and stressed that Italy will do its best to achieve the date.

This is important not only for Serbia but also for its role in the region, said Bonino, stressing that the two countries have very good relations in the political and economic terms, with room for further improvement in the field of culture and civil society.

PM "expects positive decision"

Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dačić stated on Tuesday that Serbia expects the European Council to adopt a positive decision on the initiation of Serbia's EU accession talks at the session scheduled for June 28.

By its moves, Serbia gave an encouragement to its partners to back its EU path, Dačić told reporters in the Serbian government building after the meeting with Italian Foreign Minister Emma Bonino.

The prime minister explained that the encouraging moves include the signing of the agreement on normalisation of relations with Priština and its implementation.

Dačić said that the Lithuanian parliament ratified the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with Serbia on Tuesday and that Lithuania was the only country which had not ratified the agreement with Serbia until now.

The prime minister said that Italy and Serbia share excellent relations and expressed gratitude to the Italian minister for the support of the Italian government to Serbia's EU integration.