Nikolić wants PM Dačić to head negotiating team

BELGRADE Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic told B92 TV late on Sunday that he would suggest PM Ivica Dacic to head Belgrade's team in negotiations with Pristina. A decision on the issue could be made on Monday, when Nikolic is scheduled to meet with the members of the government. Nikolic wants PM Dacic to head negotiating team He also clarified that Dacic should assume this role because "president of government goes to negotiations with president of government", since Pristina "is suggesting their premier". Nikolic said he was ready to "take the responsibility himself and take part in negotiations" if the government asks, but that in that case - his demand was "not to negotiate with (Kosovo Albanian PM) Hashim Thaci". While he himself would not shake Thaci hand, Nikolic explained that "it was possible that the person who will lead the negotiations will have to do so". Asked whether there were any hints he might meet with Thaci, Nikolic recalled that he recently in New York left a reception "at the EU embassy premises" once he heard the Kosovo Albanian prime minister was there, and also told EU's Catherine Ashton that he was "surprised by his presence, because chiefs of delegations had been invited". Moving on to wider issues concerning Kosovo, the president said that there was "no secret diplomacy" involved and that the country had "two imperatives: to join the EU and to never recognize Kosovo". Nikolic added that he "and everybody in the government" was sending their message that there would be no "hastily made moves". He believes that Serbia will not face conditions that had not been put before other countries, and that, should a recognition of Kosovo crop up as one of those conditions, "further negotiations with the EU would be very difficult". As for the announced platform for Kosovo, he stated that "the initial text will come from the Presidency", and added that he wished to see "a huge majority, at least 200 MPs" support it in parliament. "If we go to negotiations with Pristina unde the axiom that Kosovo is a state within the boundaries that it was as our Kosovo and Metohija and that this is not to be discussed, then there's nothing to negotiate about. The Albanians must give up on (thinking) they had gotten a state," believes Nikolic. The president stressed that Serbia will have to make a stance on how it sees Kosovo in the future and that the government would not be "hiding its head in the sand like an ostrich". According to him, should the EU officially present its position that Serbia's "good neighborly relations with Kosovo" were a condition for its EU integrations, "relations in Kosovo would become very strained and Serbia would in that case start preparing for the possibility that someone might start taking that by force - because there will be no interlocutors for such a solution in the Serbian president or government". A signature on a statement on "good neighborly relations" would be tantamount to recognizing Kosovo, according to him, and for that reason it was "out of the question, and probably will never be signed". Nikolic once again repeated that Serbia would honor all agreements concerning Kosovo reached by the previous government, but that "there will be no rush in making decisions in the future": "We will consider very carefully each agreement. Serbia depends on this from now on, so far they have been playing games, now we have arrived at the edge, either we will defend Serbia or we'll be jumping into the abyss as if we were led by a blind leader." He revealed that ten days ago he received "from the EU safe in Brussels" the agreements on integrated management of administrative line crossings, and that "each page had been initialed by Serbian officials". "These agreements are very bad," claimed Nikolic, and added that the new authorities first found themselves in a dilemma - but then "decided to stand behind the reached solutions". The president also expressed his belief that "by amending them, it could be achieved that (the agreements) will not be against Serbia's interests". "Everything in me is against an Albanian customs official being on the Jarinje checkpoint, and there will be. Everything in me is against the citizens going to Pristina for a driving license, and that is how it will be. Albanians will have the cadaster books, that will be too, and we have also agreed to verify all diplomas from Pristina, although we don't know under which programs they had been received," said Nikolic. The Serbian president added that he did not "stutter" during his meeting with Barack Obama, but felt as comfortable as when he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, that he "does not get carried away thinking that America might rescind its recognition of Kosovo", and that he told that country's leader that a solution could be found for Kosovo if the reality were to be taken into account that there were "four different situations there": "I told him there were at least four different situations in Kosovo and that this could not be solved just like that. There are parts of Kosovo without Serbs, like Pristina, from which 80,000 people (Serbs) disappeared." He further said he noted that there were other parts of Kosovo where Serbs were a majority in a small territory, as well as "the Serbian Orthodox Church in the special status": "There's also the north of Kosovo where there are as many Albanians as there had been before, because they had no reason to move out, but Serbs make up for an overwhelming majority, and that this cannot be in the same relation and under the same local self-government and jurisdiction from Pristina or Belgrade." Nikolic aslo spoke about other issues, such as the director of the Serbian public broadcaster RTS, Aleksandar Tijanic, whom he said he would sack if he were the prime minister, and the recently banned gay parade in Belgrade, on which he commented by saying, "Had the parade not been banned, and had there been any threats, I would have stood at its helm." Tomislav Nikolic (Tanjug, file) B92 Beta

Nikolić wants PM Dačić to head negotiating team

He also clarified that Dačić should assume this role because "president of government goes to negotiations with president of government", since Priština "is suggesting their premier".

Nikolić said he was ready to "take the responsibility himself and take part in negotiations" if the government asks, but that in that case - his demand was "not to negotiate with (Kosovo Albanian PM) Hashim Thaci".

While he himself would not shake Thaci hand, Nikolić explained that "it was possible that the person who will lead the negotiations will have to do so".

Asked whether there were any hints he might meet with Thaci, Nikolić recalled that he recently in New York left a reception "at the EU embassy premises" once he heard the Kosovo Albanian prime minister was there, and also told EU's Catherine Ashton that he was "surprised by his presence, because chiefs of delegations had been invited".

Moving on to wider issues concerning Kosovo, the president said that there was "no secret diplomacy" involved and that the country had "two imperatives: to join the EU and to never recognize Kosovo".

Nikolić added that he "and everybody in the government" was sending their message that there would be no "hastily made moves".

He believes that Serbia will not face conditions that had not been put before other countries, and that, should a recognition of Kosovo crop up as one of those conditions, "further negotiations with the EU would be very difficult".

As for the announced platform for Kosovo, he stated that "the initial text will come from the Presidency", and added that he wished to see "a huge majority, at least 200 MPs" support it in parliament.

"If we go to negotiations with Priština unde the axiom that Kosovo is a state within the boundaries that it was as our Kosovo and Metohija and that this is not to be discussed, then there's nothing to negotiate about. The Albanians must give up on (thinking) they had gotten a state," believes Nikolić.

The president stressed that Serbia will have to make a stance on how it sees Kosovo in the future and that the government would not be "hiding its head in the sand like an ostrich".

According to him, should the EU officially present its position that Serbia's "good neighborly relations with Kosovo" were a condition for its EU integrations, "relations in Kosovo would become very strained and Serbia would in that case start preparing for the possibility that someone might start taking that by force - because there will be no interlocutors for such a solution in the Serbian president or government".

A signature on a statement on "good neighborly relations" would be tantamount to recognizing Kosovo, according to him, and for that reason it was "out of the question, and probably will never be signed".

Nikolić once again repeated that Serbia would honor all agreements concerning Kosovo reached by the previous government, but that "there will be no rush in making decisions in the future":

"We will consider very carefully each agreement. Serbia depends on this from now on, so far they have been playing games, now we have arrived at the edge, either we will defend Serbia or we'll be jumping into the abyss as if we were led by a blind leader."

He revealed that ten days ago he received "from the EU safe in Brussels" the agreements on integrated management of administrative line crossings, and that "each page had been initialed by Serbian officials".

"These agreements are very bad," claimed Nikolić, and added that the new authorities first found themselves in a dilemma - but then "decided to stand behind the reached solutions".

The president also expressed his belief that "by amending them, it could be achieved that (the agreements) will not be against Serbia's interests".

"Everything in me is against an Albanian customs official being on the Jarinje checkpoint, and there will be. Everything in me is against the citizens going to Priština for a driving license, and that is how it will be. Albanians will have the cadaster books, that will be too, and we have also agreed to verify all diplomas from Priština, although we don't know under which programs they had been received," said Nikolić.

The Serbian president added that he did not "stutter" during his meeting with Barack Obama, but felt as comfortable as when he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, that he "does not get carried away thinking that America might rescind its recognition of Kosovo", and that he told that country's leader that a solution could be found for Kosovo if the reality were to be taken into account that there were "four different situations there":

"I told him there were at least four different situations in Kosovo and that this could not be solved just like that. There are parts of Kosovo without Serbs, like Priština, from which 80,000 people (Serbs) disappeared."

He further said he noted that there were other parts of Kosovo where Serbs were a majority in a small territory, as well as "the Serbian Orthodox Church in the special status":

"There's also the north of Kosovo where there are as many Albanians as there had been before, because they had no reason to move out, but Serbs make up for an overwhelming majority, and that this cannot be in the same relation and under the same local self-government and jurisdiction from Priština or Belgrade."

Nikolić aslo spoke about other issues, such as the director of the Serbian public broadcaster RTS, Aleksandar Tijanić, whom he said he would sack if he were the prime minister, and the recently banned gay parade in Belgrade, on which he commented by saying, "Had the parade not been banned, and had there been any threats, I would have stood at its helm."