"Official Belgrade to decide on NATO membership"

Source: Tanjug

BELGRADE -- NATO Commander of Allied Command Transformation Stephane Abrial says a decision on NATO membership will be a sovereign decision of official Belgrade.

Abrial and Miletić (Beta)

He added that NATO wants the same level of relations as Serbia.

NATO is open for cooperation, but it fully respects the decision of any sovereign country, Abrial stated at a joint press conference with Serbian Chief of General Staff Gen Miloje Miletić, held in the break of the Strategic Military Partner Conference.

Abrial stressed that Serbia is a crucial factor of stability in the Balkans and added that the strengthening of relations between Serbia and NATO will benefit the entire region.

So as not to get confused, partnership is not the recruitment of countries and peoples to fight for NATO's aims, but rather a strategic tool for the creation of a security network, Abrial pointed out.

Partnership is not a waiting room for NATO, he added.

According to him, the fact that Serbia wants to be military neutral does not mean it cannot cooperate with the North Atlantic alliance.

He said that, as member of the Partnership for Peace, Serbia cooperates with NATO, assessing that both Belgrade and Brussels benefit from it.

When asked about how he feels in Belgrade, the French general said that, considering that Serbia was bombed by NATO 12 years ago, people should be aware of what happened in the past and remember it, but that today they should look to the future.