Q:
A:
No agreement on community of Serbian municipalities yet reached
Belgrade,
14 March 2013
Prime Minister Ivica Dacic and President Tomislav Nikolic said after a meeting with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton that Belgrade and Pristina will resume dialgoue in Brussels on 20 March.
Tomislav Nikolic and Ivica Dacic
Dacic said that there are still discrepancies in stances of Belgrade and Pristina on the formation of the community of Serbian municipalities in Kosovo and that no agreement has been reached yet.
The Prime Minister said that there are three key questions which should be answered, and the crucial one is what the community of Serbian municipalities is and what jurisdictions it should have.
Therefore, it is not easy to find answers about the competences of the community of Serbian municipalities in the areas which it will be entrusted with, he said.
Dacic underlined that anyway Serbia cannot accept that the community of Serbian municipalities should have an informal form, which may even be close to an NGO.
The other two questions are the justice system and the police, since it is not at all the same who is protecting you, who is defending you, and who is judging you, Dacic said.
These two issues are not a subject to discussion, bidding or media speculations, he said.
Dacic denied that there were any talks about an agreement on the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina.
The Prime Minister underlined that it is crucial that in all talks, and this time as well, unity has been demonstrated by the state leadership.
Nikolic said there is still no agreement about the formation of the community of Serbian municipalities in Kosovo, but expressed belief that a solution can be reached and the Serbian parliament's Resolution on Kosovo will be honoured in the process.
I think we have never been closer to an agreement which will give the people in Kosovo a chance to live better, to be protected, to develop and live in peace and the Serbs a chance to live in a community in which they would regulate their life and stay connected to Serbia, so that it can assist them, said the President.
Nikolic said that direct talks would resume in Brussels on 20 March, noting that an informal agreement might be drawn up until then and proposed in Brussels, made on the basis of opinions of Pristina and Belgrade.
The Serbian President said that Ashton conveyed her impressions of the talks in Pristina and expressed moderate optimism.
The Meeting with the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy was also attended by First Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic.
The Prime Minister said that there are three key questions which should be answered, and the crucial one is what the community of Serbian municipalities is and what jurisdictions it should have.
Therefore, it is not easy to find answers about the competences of the community of Serbian municipalities in the areas which it will be entrusted with, he said.
Dacic underlined that anyway Serbia cannot accept that the community of Serbian municipalities should have an informal form, which may even be close to an NGO.
The other two questions are the justice system and the police, since it is not at all the same who is protecting you, who is defending you, and who is judging you, Dacic said.
These two issues are not a subject to discussion, bidding or media speculations, he said.
Dacic denied that there were any talks about an agreement on the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina.
The Prime Minister underlined that it is crucial that in all talks, and this time as well, unity has been demonstrated by the state leadership.
Nikolic said there is still no agreement about the formation of the community of Serbian municipalities in Kosovo, but expressed belief that a solution can be reached and the Serbian parliament's Resolution on Kosovo will be honoured in the process.
I think we have never been closer to an agreement which will give the people in Kosovo a chance to live better, to be protected, to develop and live in peace and the Serbs a chance to live in a community in which they would regulate their life and stay connected to Serbia, so that it can assist them, said the President.
Nikolic said that direct talks would resume in Brussels on 20 March, noting that an informal agreement might be drawn up until then and proposed in Brussels, made on the basis of opinions of Pristina and Belgrade.
The Serbian President said that Ashton conveyed her impressions of the talks in Pristina and expressed moderate optimism.
The Meeting with the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy was also attended by First Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic.
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