Del Ponte gives Serbia negative report

Chief Hague Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte submitted a negative report on Serbia's cooperation with the UN court. "I can confirm that the situation today is much better than it was a year ago, but the cooperation is still too slow and insufficient," Del Ponte said in Luxembourg, an EU Council of Ministers statement said today. Del Ponte gives Serbia negative report She was attending a meeting of EU foreign policy chiefs gathered to decide how to proceed with Serbia's Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) bid. Brussels' decision on whether to initial the agreement, viewed as the first step toward EU membership, was said to depend on the Del Ponte report. A positive 2005 feasibility study led the way for the opening of the European Commission's SAA negotiations with Serbia in the same year. Although the talks were frozen in May of 2006 due to Serbia's lack of compliance with the Hague – specifically over the issue of the arrest of fugitive Ratko Mladic – they were restarted on June 13, 2007. The Commission officials cited their "cautious optimism" over the recommencement of talks, however pointed out that their continuation was dependent on Serbia's cooperation with the court. The ministers will gather in Luxembourg to discuss whether Serbia should be allowed to initial the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA). Earlier today European Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn, who met with Del Ponte on Thursday, said that the agreement could be initialed with Serbia only if it improved its cooperation with the Tribunal. Rehn’s spokeswoman Christina Nagy also said that Del Ponte needed to evaluate to what extent it had improved by the inclusion of rewards for those providing information on the whereabouts or that leading to the arrest of Hague fugitive Ratko Mladic. Rehn said that Belgrade had to complete full cooperation with the Tribunal in order to sign the SAA, stating that all Hague fugitives must be arrested and extradited. Unnamed sources from Portugal told journalists that Carla Del Ponte was “very happy with the progress made by Serbia in cooperation with the Tribunal,” the last time she met with the EU ministers. The source said that the ministers would still be extremely interested in what Del Ponte had to say and how her stance had changed, after which they would “think about it and then form their own opinion,” regarding moves towards concluding the agreement with Serbia. Sources within the EU Ministerial Council and European Commission stated that there was a possibility that the agreement could be initialed by the end of this month or next month if Del Ponte felt that Belgrade’s level of cooperation with the Tribunal was satisfactory. There were claims that some member states believed a strong stance had to be taken with Serbia, calling for higher levels of evidence of cooperation in order to receive the green light for initialing the SAA. If the EU agrees to the initialing, it will then demand that Serbia must either arrest all the remaining indictees or give very specific proof that none of the fugitives, Mladic especially, are located on Serbian territory. Rehn has already stated that the technical part of the SAA went very well. The European Commission strongly supports the acceleration of the process if Serbia is able to prove a satisfactory level of cooperation with the Tribunal. Officials in Brussels will discuss Hague issues tomorrow with coordinators for implementing the Action Plan for completing cooperation with the Tribunal, Rasim Ljajic and Vladimir Vukcevic.

Del Ponte gives Serbia negative report

She was attending a meeting of EU foreign policy chiefs gathered to decide how to proceed with Serbia's Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) bid.

Brussels' decision on whether to initial the agreement, viewed as the first step toward EU membership, was said to depend on the Del Ponte report.

A positive 2005 feasibility study led the way for the opening of the European Commission's SAA negotiations with Serbia in the same year.

Although the talks were frozen in May of 2006 due to Serbia's lack of compliance with the Hague – specifically over the issue of the arrest of fugitive Ratko Mladić – they were restarted on June 13, 2007.

The Commission officials cited their "cautious optimism" over the recommencement of talks, however pointed out that their continuation was dependent on Serbia's cooperation with the court.

The ministers will gather in Luxembourg to discuss whether Serbia should be allowed to initial the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA).

Earlier today European Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn, who met with Del Ponte on Thursday, said that the agreement could be initialed with Serbia only if it improved its cooperation with the Tribunal.

Rehn’s spokeswoman Christina Nagy also said that Del Ponte needed to evaluate to what extent it had improved by the inclusion of rewards for those providing information on the whereabouts or that leading to the arrest of Hague fugitive Ratko Mladić.

Rehn said that Belgrade had to complete full cooperation with the Tribunal in order to sign the SAA, stating that all Hague fugitives must be arrested and extradited.

Unnamed sources from Portugal told journalists that Carla Del Ponte was “very happy with the progress made by Serbia in cooperation with the Tribunal,” the last time she met with the EU ministers.

The source said that the ministers would still be extremely interested in what Del Ponte had to say and how her stance had changed, after which they would “think about it and then form their own opinion,” regarding moves towards concluding the agreement with Serbia.

Sources within the EU Ministerial Council and European Commission stated that there was a possibility that the agreement could be initialed by the end of this month or next month if Del Ponte felt that Belgrade’s level of cooperation with the Tribunal was satisfactory.

There were claims that some member states believed a strong stance had to be taken with Serbia, calling for higher levels of evidence of cooperation in order to receive the green light for initialing the SAA.

If the EU agrees to the initialing, it will then demand that Serbia must either arrest all the remaining indictees or give very specific proof that none of the fugitives, Mladić especially, are located on Serbian territory.

Rehn has already stated that the technical part of the SAA went very well.

The European Commission strongly supports the acceleration of the process if Serbia is able to prove a satisfactory level of cooperation with the Tribunal.

Officials in Brussels will discuss Hague issues tomorrow with coordinators for implementing the Action Plan for completing cooperation with the Tribunal, Rasim Ljajić and Vladimir Vukčević.