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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Government success in addressing foreign policy priorities

Belgrade, 24 June 2009

Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said that Serbia will not recognise Kosovo under any circumstances and will make every effort to become an EU member like all other Western Balkan countries.

In an interview with the weekly Vreme, Jeremic said that it will not be easy to achieve this goal but he still believes that Serbia will succeed in acquiring EU membership without recognising Kosovo.

He said that he expects that the issue of Kosovo’s final status will be resolved before Serbia joins the EU, adding that dialogue with Pristina in order to reach a solution acceptable for all sides will become possible once the International Court of Justice (ICJ) gives its opinion on the legality of Kosovo’s independence.

We expect that a solution for the Kosovo issue acceptable for all sides will be reached after the ICJ gives its opinion. In order for the solution to be acceptable for Serbia the Kosovo Albanians must state that their declaration of independence was illegitimate and accept Serbia as their country, explained Jeremic.

He said that he is hopeful that the ICJ will reach the conclusion that Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence was a violation of international law, adding that in that case Pristina will be in a very awkward situation because there will be no further recognition of it.

He said that if the ICJ states that Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence was illegal then Kosovo will surely not be able to become a member of any international organisations, which will leave Pristina with no other option than talking with Belgrade.

As for the final status of Kosovo-Metohija, Jeremic did not want to pre-empt judgement but reiterated that Belgrade advocates the continuation of negotiations in order to find a compromise solution acceptable to both sides.

According to the Minister the number of countries that have recognised Kosovo is lower than expected, i.e. 62 out of 192 UN members. Serbian diplomacy has achieved success when it comes to the Kosovo issue. One of Serbia’s key strategies is the discussion of this issue before the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Jeremic noted that he is doing his best to help achieve the government’s three foreign policy goals, the speeding up of Serbia’s EU integration, the preservation of its territorial integrity and sovereignty and the promotion of regional cooperation.

Last week Serbia clearly showed that it is able to face all challenges. Apart from the announcement of visa liberalisation for Serbian citizens, the UN Security Council’s session was in Serbia’s favour and the 16th summit of heads of central European states, held in Novi Sad, proved that Serbia is a leader in the region, he said, adding that the summit concluded that there is no alternative to a future within the EU for the Balkans.

Minister Jeremic noted that when it comes to the removal of visa restrictions for Serbian citizens Serbia must solve the remaining technical problems, adding that citizens of Albanian nationality living in Kosovo will also be eligible for a new passport as checking mechanisms have already been established.