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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Physical, legal violence frequent in Kosovo-Metohija

Belgrade, 30 October 2012

Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivan Mrkic said today that his Ministry is concentrated on providing support to the Serbian negotiating team in dialogue with the interim government in Pristina institutions and activities whose goal is to not let Kosovo enter among sovereign states.

Author: Tanjug

Submitting a report to the Serbian parliament’s Committee for Kosovo-Metohija, Mrkic said that his Ministry with its activities blocks the creation of international sovereignty of Kosovo, recalling that the unilaterally proclaimed independence of Kosovo has been recognised so far by 90 countries and that the dynamics of recognition has been slowed down in the last three years.

The session was also attended by Director of the Serbian government’s Office for Kosovo-Metohija Aleksandar Vulin, who underlined that the situation in the province is characterised by frequent physical and legal violence.

Vulin recalled that in the last 20 days three people were arrested in Jarinje and that the international community should be asked on the basis of what the Kosovo Police Service (KPS) is allowed to issue arrest warrants.

He said that this morning in the Srbica municipality, in Talinovac village, a village cemetery was demolished, that Kosovo Serbs are daily exposed to the forceful seizure of property and looting and that there is no larger settlement where the return of a significant number of refugees was organised.

According to him, out of 22,000 Serbs who returned to Kosovo-Metohija, only 4,000 remained to live there.

Vulin pointed out that the Office for Kosovo-Metohija requested from the State Audit Institution to check the work of institutions in the southern province and the Office itself, but that it received a response that the State Audit Institution and the budget inspection service do not have enough staff.

Advisor to the Serbian President Marko Djuric said that Serbia is aware of the fact that the continuation of dialogue with Pristina is mutually important for the further integration of the whole region into the EU.

Director of the Serbian government’s Office for Expert and Operational Tasks in Negotiation Process Dejan Pavicevic also addressed the MPs today at the session of the Committee for Kosovo-Metohija, who said that what the previous negotiation team agreed on is mostly being implemented.

Pavicevic said that the land register and the civil registry are in the final stage, that the freedom of movement is being implemented in accordance with the agreement reached, and that the main problem is the insurance price of €105.

The licence plates are problematic as well, Pavicevic explained, as the Serbs who live south from the River Ibar and take RSK licence plates containing the combination of numbers and letters, and these letters are BG, are being attacked.

Pavicevic recalled that on 25 October the Serbian government adopted the Platform for the further continuation of talks among technical groups and he concluded that there are no big complaints from the Serbian government when it comes to regional representation.