Rehn: SAA signing before May 11

EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn has repeated that the EU intends to sign the SAA with Serbia before the May 11 elections. “We don’t want Serbia to give up on its European integration. Signing the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) would be a strong signal that the EU is dedicated to Serbia’s European future,” Rehn told German daily Welt. Rehn: SAA signing before May 11 The initiative for signing the SAA has thus far been blocked by Holland and Belgium, who insist on Belgrade extraditing the remaining war crimes fugitives prior to putting pen to paper. The matter will most probably be the main theme at the meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg on April 29. Meanwhile, Serbian and Slovakian Foreign Ministers Vuk Jeremic and Jan Kubis agreed in Belgrade today that Serbia should sign the SAA with the EU as soon as possible. It was stressed that this would in no way mean giving up the fight for preserving Serbia's territorial integrity and sovereignty. “We back Serbia as a future member of the EU,” Kubis told a joint press conference. “We would like to sign the SAA with Serbia as soon as possible, and we would like to do this today if possible,” he underlined, adding that his country would maintain its firm line on refusal to recognize Kosovo’s unilaterally declared independence. “My country’s position as regards the declaration and recognition of Kosovo's independence has not changed,” the Slovakian foreign minister underlined. Kubis said that the position of all EU member-states, even those that were hesitating with regards to the signing of the SAA, was clear and that they saw Serbia as a future partner in the Union, provided that the people of Serbia expressed their democratic will for something like that. Jeremic underlined that the signing of the SAA, which right now represented a crucial step towards EU membership, did not mean, under any circumstances, that Serbia would give up its state policy's principle goal—preservation of the country's territorial integrity and sovereignty. Serbia would continue to oppose Kosovo’s unilateral independence, and it would never, under any circumstances whatsoever, give up on the preservation of its territorial integrity, he reiterated. The foreign minister said that signing the SAA was a “technical step,” and that the decision concerning EU membership that the electorate would take at the May 11 elections was political. Olli Rehn (Fonet, archive)

Rehn: SAA signing before May 11

The initiative for signing the SAA has thus far been blocked by Holland and Belgium, who insist on Belgrade extraditing the remaining war crimes fugitives prior to putting pen to paper.

The matter will most probably be the main theme at the meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg on April 29.

Meanwhile, Serbian and Slovakian Foreign Ministers Vuk Jeremić and Jan Kubiš agreed in Belgrade today that Serbia should sign the SAA with the EU as soon as possible.

It was stressed that this would in no way mean giving up the fight for preserving Serbia's territorial integrity and sovereignty.

“We back Serbia as a future member of the EU,” Kubiš told a joint press conference.

“We would like to sign the SAA with Serbia as soon as possible, and we would like to do this today if possible,” he underlined, adding that his country would maintain its firm line on refusal to recognize Kosovo’s unilaterally declared independence.

“My country’s position as regards the declaration and recognition of Kosovo's independence has not changed,” the Slovakian foreign minister underlined.

Kubiš said that the position of all EU member-states, even those that were hesitating with regards to the signing of the SAA, was clear and that they saw Serbia as a future partner in the Union, provided that the people of Serbia expressed their democratic will for something like that.

Jeremić underlined that the signing of the SAA, which right now represented a crucial step towards EU membership, did not mean, under any circumstances, that Serbia would give up its state policy's principle goal—preservation of the country's territorial integrity and sovereignty.

Serbia would continue to oppose Kosovo’s unilateral independence, and it would never, under any circumstances whatsoever, give up on the preservation of its territorial integrity, he reiterated.

The foreign minister said that signing the SAA was a “technical step,” and that the decision concerning EU membership that the electorate would take at the May 11 elections was political.