"SNS will wait until midnight for DS to respond"

Opposition SNS party Tomislav Nikolic stated on Monday that his party will wait until midnight for the ruling Democratic Party (DS) to respond to their request. The party is calling early elections after Serbia obtains EU candidate status. "SNS will wait until midnight for DS to respond" If DS fails to submit its positive reply by then, the opposition would stage another protest in Belgrade on April 16, he told B92. Nikolic said that SNS would stay in the street for as long as it takes for Serbian President Boris Tadic to come forth and state that early elections would be called. If the EU decides that Serbia cannot meet its conditions by October, then the country does not need such a government, Nikolic said and pointed to the signal voiced by Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia Vincent Degert, who said that the possibility of Serbia not obtaining EU candidate status by the end of the year should not be ruled out. Nikolic assessed that if the elections were to be held in late October, a new government with a four-year mandate which would take over the talks on Serbia's EU membership would be constituted in December, by the time the EU Council states its opinion. Speaking about his recent visit to Brussels, Nikolic said that SNS communicated to European officials that situation in Serbia is unbearable and that it seems the government is obstructing the country's EU path. He added that he informed EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule about the degree of Serbia's compliance with conditions for EU accession. Nikolic also said that he visited Russia recently for personal reasons, and expressed belief that he will have a chance to meet Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in Belgrade on Wednesday, when the Russian official is supposed to hold a meeting with caucus whips in the Serbian parliament. Tomislav Nikolic (FoNet, file)

"SNS will wait until midnight for DS to respond"

If DS fails to submit its positive reply by then, the opposition would stage another protest in Belgrade on April 16, he told B92.

Nikolić said that SNS would stay in the street for as long as it takes for Serbian President Boris Tadic to come forth and state that early elections would be called.

If the EU decides that Serbia cannot meet its conditions by October, then the country does not need such a government, Nikolić said and pointed to the signal voiced by Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia Vincent Degert, who said that the possibility of Serbia not obtaining EU candidate status by the end of the year should not be ruled out.

Nikolić assessed that if the elections were to be held in late October, a new government with a four-year mandate which would take over the talks on Serbia's EU membership would be constituted in December, by the time the EU Council states its opinion.

Speaking about his recent visit to Brussels, Nikolić said that SNS communicated to European officials that situation in Serbia is unbearable and that it seems the government is obstructing the country's EU path. He added that he informed EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule about the degree of Serbia's compliance with conditions for EU accession.

Nikolić also said that he visited Russia recently for personal reasons, and expressed belief that he will have a chance to meet Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in Belgrade on Wednesday, when the Russian official is supposed to hold a meeting with caucus whips in the Serbian parliament.