"Kosovo’s EU pathway depends on reforms"

PRISTINA After visiting Belgrade on Thursday, EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule visited Pristina on Friday and met with Kosovo officials. He said that Kosovo’s EU pathway did not depend on the EU but on Kosovo's work and impelemntation of reforms. "Kosovo’s EU pathway depends on reforms" After a meeting with Kosovo's Prime Minister Hashim Thaci, Fule stressed that Kosovo’s talks on the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) with the EU could begin in the first half of 2013 if the Pristina institutions worked hard. He told a press conference that the Feasibility Study was a big step for Kosovo on the EU pathway. “The Study confirms that there are no legal obstacles for the completion of the SAA and Kosovo’s EU accession,” Fule noted but stressed that everything depended on the Kosovo institutions. “If you have a strong consensus and if you work hard, I believe that you can start the negotiations (on the SAA) in the first half of the next year. Kosovo’s EU pathway does not depend on us in the EU but solely on your work on reforms and your ability to build a strong consensus in Kosovo’s society,” the enlargement commissioner underscored. Thaci thanked Fule for his involvement in bringing Kosovo closer to the EU and warned that the EU pathway was not easy or short but pointed out that the Kosovo institutions would continue to respect and fulfill the necessary criteria and standards. “The (EU) integration is not just an option, Kosovo’s EU integration is our goal and vision,” the Kosovo PM told the press. He added that the Pristina institutions agreed with clear messages that had been sent from Brussels – that Europeanization of the Balkans included good neighborly relations between all the countries and people. “Kosovo and Serbia should move forward on the EU pathway by making it easier for each other and not by halting each other. We do not want to hold each other hostage and Kosovo is ready for the European future and good neighborly relations with all the countries in the region,” Thaci said. Fule met with Kosovo’s President Atifete Jahjaga last night in Pristina. The European Commission (EC) adopted the Feasibility Study for Kosovo on Wednesday and noted that a possible signing of the SAA would not violate EU’s status neutrality. Fule visited Belgrade on Thursday where he met with Serbian PM Ivica Dacic, President Tomislav Nikolic and attended the Serbian parliament’s committee session. He informed the prime minister that there were no new conditions for Serbia. At the session of the Committee on EU Integrations, Fule rejected Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) request that controversial formulation “Kosovo’s territorial integrity” be removed from an official EC document dubbed Enlargement Strategy and Main Challenges 2012-2013. "We will not remove that sentence because we firmly believe that territory is but one of the criteria that defines an entity as a state. Territorial integrity does not mean that something is a state," the enlargement commissioner stressed. Nikolic told Fule at the meeting that the EU should change the controversial formulation if it truly wanted Serbia to join in. Stefan Fule (Tanjug, file) B92 Beta

"Kosovo’s EU pathway depends on reforms"

After a meeting with Kosovo's Prime Minister Hashim Thaci, Fule stressed that Kosovo’s talks on the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) with the EU could begin in the first half of 2013 if the Priština institutions worked hard.

He told a press conference that the Feasibility Study was a big step for Kosovo on the EU pathway.

“The Study confirms that there are no legal obstacles for the completion of the SAA and Kosovo’s EU accession,” Fule noted but stressed that everything depended on the Kosovo institutions.

“If you have a strong consensus and if you work hard, I believe that you can start the negotiations (on the SAA) in the first half of the next year. Kosovo’s EU pathway does not depend on us in the EU but solely on your work on reforms and your ability to build a strong consensus in Kosovo’s society,” the enlargement commissioner underscored.

Thaci thanked Fule for his involvement in bringing Kosovo closer to the EU and warned that the EU pathway was not easy or short but pointed out that the Kosovo institutions would continue to respect and fulfill the necessary criteria and standards.

“The (EU) integration is not just an option, Kosovo’s EU integration is our goal and vision,” the Kosovo PM told the press.

He added that the Priština institutions agreed with clear messages that had been sent from Brussels – that Europeanization of the Balkans included good neighborly relations between all the countries and people.

“Kosovo and Serbia should move forward on the EU pathway by making it easier for each other and not by halting each other. We do not want to hold each other hostage and Kosovo is ready for the European future and good neighborly relations with all the countries in the region,” Thaci said.

Fule met with Kosovo’s President Atifete Jahjaga last night in Priština.

The European Commission (EC) adopted the Feasibility Study for Kosovo on Wednesday and noted that a possible signing of the SAA would not violate EU’s status neutrality.

Fule visited Belgrade on Thursday where he met with Serbian PM Ivica Dačić, President Tomislav Nikolić and attended the Serbian parliament’s committee session.

He informed the prime minister that there were no new conditions for Serbia.

At the session of the Committee on EU Integrations, Fule rejected Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) request that controversial formulation “Kosovo’s territorial integrity” be removed from an official EC document dubbed Enlargement Strategy and Main Challenges 2012-2013.

"We will not remove that sentence because we firmly believe that territory is but one of the criteria that defines an entity as a state. Territorial integrity does not mean that something is a state," the enlargement commissioner stressed.

Nikolić told Fule at the meeting that the EU should change the controversial formulation if it truly wanted Serbia to join in.