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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Preparation of national strategy for EU accession speeded up

Belgrade, 20 October 2004

Chairman of the Serbian parliament's Committee for European Integrations Ksenija Milivojevic voiced hope that Serbia's national strategy for Serbia-Montenegro's accession to the European Union (EU) will be completed soon, so that its implementation could begin as soon as possible.

Milivojevic told a press conference that the Committee for European Integrations will continue cooperation with the Serbian government's Office for EU Accession. The Committee will not only offer active support to the government, she said, but it will also initiate all necessary parliamentary activities concerning the process of European integrations.

She said that in the meantime the implementation of the recently adopted Resolution on EU Accession will be continued. She voiced hope that the Serbian government will regularly brief the parliament on its activities in the field of European integrations, and that this will be fully used in the preparation of this strategy.

Secretary of the government's Office for EU Accession Radmila Milivojevic said that the national strategy must contain three elements: an account of the current situation in Serbia in the fields relevant for EU accession, an analysis of conditions that are to be met in that process, and the working procedure and deadlines for taking necessary measures and activities.

Radmila Milivojevic said that the accession process is a process of changing our lives for the better and therefore it requires certain financial costs. For that reason, the experiences of neighbouring countries will be used in the preparation of the strategy with the aim of reducing the costs. However, the transition of society must be achieved.

According to Milivojevic, this document must in no way be a wish list, but rather a rational perception of all aspects and decisions that must be made, which can then lead to concrete actions.

She explained that the Serbian government has launched preparations of the action plan, which is actually a plan of the government's activities for the next three years. The government is expected to adopt this plan next week.

Special Advisor at the Office for EU Accession Mihailo Crnobrnja said that the national strategy will be the first document that will bring together activities of all sectors of the state and society, and that they will be presented as a compact whole. Another important aspect of the strategy is that it will join all these activities in time, since the strategy will be long-term.

Crnobrnja said that the strategy is a document that will give clear strategic orientation on the path towards association and therefore it will be subject to changes and harmonisation with circumstances. Perhaps a thorough revision of this document will be necessary once Serbia-Montenegro has become an official candidate for EU membership.

Crnobrnja said that the strategy is being drafted by experts who are active at universities and research institutes, as well as specialists in state administration. He added that a public debate on this document is expected to be held in November and that it will allow for more experts to be included in its preparation.