“EU, U.S. are only interested in Kosovo”

BELGRADE The most important issue for the international community is the issue of Kosovo, believe Natasa Kandic and Sonja Biserko. When asked who is right, the ones who say that Serbia today is worse off than ever, historian Latinka Perovic who recently said that Serbia was slowly disappearing or the current government led by the Progressives and Socialists who say that the situation is better today than before, Kandic and Biserko said that all three claims had a little bit of truth in them. “EU, U.S. are only interested in Kosovo” Kandic, a director of the Humanitarian Law Center, told B92 that Serbian citizens today live much worse, that it was true that Serbia was disappearing but that one had to admit that some things were improving, She stressed, however, that Serbia today was a post-conflict society which had not started to clean up and solve problems from the past, such as war crimes. Kandic added that October 5, 2000 had not “cleared the situation”. “All in all, we cannot say that we are a decent, organized society,” she noted. On the other hand, she added that one could not say that Serbia was disappearing because it was solving issues. As an example, she pointed to the Kosovo issue. According to Kandic, the issue of Kosovo is the most important issue and the only issue that the international community is interested in when it comes to Serbia. “They are only interested in Kosovo, they are leaving everything else up to us and it depends on us. The EU and the U.S. are not interested in who is in power because they have interlocutors who will solve the issue of Kosovo. This government, whether we want to admit it or not, has made a great progress when it comes to Kosovo compared to the previous one,” she underscored. Helsinki Committee for Human Rights Director Biserko believes that the EU and the U.S. feel betrayed after 20 years and that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton’s recent visit to Belgrade shows that the international community will not allow any changes of borders in the Balkans, which applies to Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina which are “facing a kind of breakdown due to internal processes”. “This visit also showed that the EU and the U.S. have a joint position on the issue, which is important because people here thought and counted on them having different positions,” Biserko explained. According to her, the international community believes that an extreme group from Kosovo would be involved in the solving of the Kosovo issue and that it would contribute the most to the solution in the end. “Kosovo needs to be let go of and we need to accept that,” Biserko pointed out and added that the EU would not include Serbia in its seven-year budget if Serbia did not cooperate. Natasa Kandic (FoNet, file) B92

“EU, U.S. are only interested in Kosovo”

Kandić, a director of the Humanitarian Law Center, told B92 that Serbian citizens today live much worse, that it was true that Serbia was disappearing but that one had to admit that some things were improving,

She stressed, however, that Serbia today was a post-conflict society which had not started to clean up and solve problems from the past, such as war crimes. Kandić added that October 5, 2000 had not “cleared the situation”.

“All in all, we cannot say that we are a decent, organized society,” she noted.

On the other hand, she added that one could not say that Serbia was disappearing because it was solving issues. As an example, she pointed to the Kosovo issue. According to Kandić, the issue of Kosovo is the most important issue and the only issue that the international community is interested in when it comes to Serbia.

“They are only interested in Kosovo, they are leaving everything else up to us and it depends on us. The EU and the U.S. are not interested in who is in power because they have interlocutors who will solve the issue of Kosovo. This government, whether we want to admit it or not, has made a great progress when it comes to Kosovo compared to the previous one,” she underscored.

Helsinki Committee for Human Rights Director Biserko believes that the EU and the U.S. feel betrayed after 20 years and that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton’s recent visit to Belgrade shows that the international community will not allow any changes of borders in the Balkans, which applies to Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina which are “facing a kind of breakdown due to internal processes”.

“This visit also showed that the EU and the U.S. have a joint position on the issue, which is important because people here thought and counted on them having different positions,” Biserko explained.

According to her, the international community believes that an extreme group from Kosovo would be involved in the solving of the Kosovo issue and that it would contribute the most to the solution in the end.

“Kosovo needs to be let go of and we need to accept that,” Biserko pointed out and added that the EU would not include Serbia in its seven-year budget if Serbia did not cooperate.