U.S.: Serbia's destiny in own hands

Senior U.S. State Dept. official Daniel Fried says Serbia must not isolate itself if it wants European integration.

Izvor: Beta

Saturday, 19.07.2008.

11:02

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Senior U.S. State Dept. official Daniel Fried says Serbia must not isolate itself if it wants European integration. “It’s up to Serbia to decide what it wants. It can go into self-isolation and be lonely, which won’t bring Kosovo back and won’t bring it close to Europe. Then again, Serbia can decide that it wants to join Europe, and the only way for Serbia and Kosovo to be in the same political house is for that house to be a common European house,” said the under secretary of state for Europe and Eurasia. U.S.: Serbia's destiny in own hands Speaking to Voice of America, Fried did not, however, want to say directly that Serbia should recognize Kosovo. “At some point, in order to join Europe, that issue will have to be resolved,” he said. The U.S. diplomat said that the Belgrade authorities had to distance themselves from, as he put it, “hardliners, criminals, and those who want to encourage violence in Kosovo.” “Serbia should not have anything to do with those people. It mustn’t support violence or radical elements that seek violence and disorder,” he stressed. Fried said that the U.S. would welcome the return of the Serbian ambassador to Washington, as it wanted to “have the best possible relations with Serbia.” “We’re very sad that our embassy in Belgrade was attacked, but I understand the current Serbian government won’t allow something like that to happen again. We didn’t ask the Serbian ambassador to go, and we would of course support his return,” said the under secretary of state. Commenting on remarks by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavov that Moscow would support a Serbian initiative to seek the opinion of the International Court of Justice over the legality of Kosovo independence, he said that such an initiative was not in Serbia’s interests. “That initiative confronts Serbia with two-thirds of the EU, and I don’t think it is in Serbia’s interests. I don’t think it’s beneficial. Serbia has to find a way to the future, and not to cling to the past. I hope that Serbia will use every chance to stick to Europe, and that it won’t shut itself inside a cage of its own making,” Fried underlined. Daniel Fried with Boris Tadic (Beta, archive)

U.S.: Serbia's destiny in own hands

Speaking to Voice of America, Fried did not, however, want to say directly that Serbia should recognize Kosovo.

“At some point, in order to join Europe, that issue will have to be resolved,” he said.

The U.S. diplomat said that the Belgrade authorities had to distance themselves from, as he put it, “hardliners, criminals, and those who want to encourage violence in Kosovo.”

“Serbia should not have anything to do with those people. It mustn’t support violence or radical elements that seek violence and disorder,” he stressed.

Fried said that the U.S. would welcome the return of the Serbian ambassador to Washington, as it wanted to “have the best possible relations with Serbia.”

“We’re very sad that our embassy in Belgrade was attacked, but I understand the current Serbian government won’t allow something like that to happen again. We didn’t ask the Serbian ambassador to go, and we would of course support his return,” said the under secretary of state.

Commenting on remarks by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavov that Moscow would support a Serbian initiative to seek the opinion of the International Court of Justice over the legality of Kosovo independence, he said that such an initiative was not in Serbia’s interests.

“That initiative confronts Serbia with two-thirds of the EU, and I don’t think it is in Serbia’s interests. I don’t think it’s beneficial. Serbia has to find a way to the future, and not to cling to the past. I hope that Serbia will use every chance to stick to Europe, and that it won’t shut itself inside a cage of its own making,” Fried underlined.

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