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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Formation of National Security Council to help fight organised crime, terrorism

Belgrade, 31 May 2007

Serbian Minister of Justice Dusan Petrovic stated today that with the formation of the National Security Council the state’s chances, possibilities and capacities to take up the best position in the fight against organised crime and terrorism will considerably improve.

Dusan Petrovic

At a press conference following the government session Petrovic said the government set up the National Security Council and decided it should be chaired by the Serbian President.

He stressed that thanks to the Council, Serbia’s state obligations will be fulfilled within a reasonable time period.

The justice minister said the President will summon the Council’s session and the President and Prime Minister will jointly determine the agenda. The Council Secretary will be Head of the President’s cabinet, he added.

Bozidar Djelic

Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic said that at today’s session the government confirmed the appointment of Serbian ambassadors in Russia, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Portugal and Canada, as well as its Head of Mission at the OSCE in Vienna.

Djelic explained that because of diplomatic protocol, ambassadors’ names cannot be announced for the time being until the Serbian President signs accreditations on their appointment.

He said that Minister without Portfolio Dragan Djilas has been appointed Head of the Office for the National Investment Plan and added that this body will be first tasked with an analysis for the budget and a re-allocation of funds for the National Investment Plan before June 14, by which date the government will have prepared a bill on the budget for 2007.

Minister of Economy and Regional Development Mladjan Dinkic has been named Chairman of the Development Fund’s Executive Board, said Djelic and added that the government decided to prepare amendments to the Law on the Development Fund in order to harmonise it with the new Law on ministries.

The Deputy Prime Minister said he has been appointed coordinator of the EU preaccession fund, which stands at around €190.9 million.

According to Djelic, the Serbian government’s aim in the next several years will be to increase the EU pre-accession funds for Serbia to about €500 million.

Rasim Ljajic

Serbian Minister of Labour and Social Policy and President of the National Council for Cooperation with the Hague Tribunal Rasim Ljajic said he expects that the report, which the Serbian authorities are to deliver next week to the Hague Tribunal’s Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte, will enable a continuation of talks between Serbia and the EU on the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA).

Ljajic stated that the Hague Tribunal’s Chief Prosecutor will be acquainted with all activities aimed at locating the remaining war crimes indictees and voiced hope that her report will be a positive one despite the fact that Ratko Mladic is still at large.

He announced that the Council’s next tasks will be to propose that the security level marked “classified” be removed from documents which should be used in the proceedings at the Tribunal, that the documents be submitted to both defence and prosecution and that families of the indictees be offered assistance.

Members and president of the National Council for Cooperation with the Hague Tribunal will be appointed at the upcoming government session, said Ljajic and added that the Council will comprise representatives of the ministries of foreign affairs, defence, interior and justice.

Slobodan Milosavljevic

Serbian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management Slobodan Milosavljevic said that the government adopted four decrees on subsidising export of agricultural products and announced that the first applications for subsidies will be submitted on June 8 and first payments realised on June 20.

The applications will be submitted to the agriculture ministry, said Milosavljevic and added that the funds have already been provided through the Decree on provisional financing from the budget in the period January-June 2007.

Milosavljevic said thanks to the subsidies, the results of agricultural production will be at a high level this year.