PACE Standing Committee meets in Belgrade

PACE Standing Committee meets in Belgrade

Serbian foreign minister Vuk Jeremić opened the session by saying that Serbia’s priorities during its chairmanship over the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers would be to promote essential values of the Council of Europe, increase citizen safety, build a more humane Europe and strengthen cooperation in the region, the government reported on its web site.

Jeremić said in his speech that Serbia was offering a European solution to Kosovo-Metohija status issue and that Belgrade’s proposal respected Serbia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, all the while enabling its ethnic Albanian citizens in Kosovo-Metohija to realize their legitimate demands for substantial self-government.

He voiced hope that a compromise solution may still be achieved through talks between Belgrade and Priština and added he expected understanding and support of the Council of Europe when the talks resumed.

Speaking of Serbia’s cooperation with the Hague Tribunal, Jeremić stressed Serbia was completely committed to meeting the Hague demands, adding that indictees must be located, arrested and extradited to the Tribunal.

“This is not only an international, but also a moral obligation towards our neighbors, the world and ourselves,“ Jeremić said underscoring at the same time that “justice could be fulfilled only if Serbia completely severed its ties with its recent past.”

Serbian Parliament Speaker Oliver Dulić who also attended the session stressed that Serbia as a young democratic country would do its best to foster the fundamental values of the Council of Europe – human rights protection, democracy and the rule of law.

Dulić said that the new Serbian government was dedicated to Serbia’s European perspective and pledged to strive towards rounding up the legal framework necessary for achieving this goal during his Speaker tenure.

The agenda for today’s meeting of the PACE Standing Committee will include reports on the respect of gender equity principles, respect of human rights and the fight against global warming.

Ahead of the meeting, CoE Parliamentary Assembly President René Van der Linden said that the CoE chairmanship was a unique opportunity for Serbia to show it belonged to a great community of European nations, as he spoke to prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica Wednesday.

“Serbia must demonstrate during its CoE chairmanship that it is ready to fulfill its international obligations, including the co-operation with the Hague Tribunal,” he added.

“in the meetings I’ve had with prime minister Vojislav Koštunica and foreign minister Vuk Jeremić, I said that handing over of war crimes fugitives to the Hague would serve as the best proof of Serbia’s resolve to engage in the a Council of Europe's  mission,” Van der Linden explained.

“I have been told that the cooperation with the Hague is one of main priorities of the new government,” he said.