"Kosovo issue open from start to finish of EU talks"

Source: Tanjug

BELGRADE -- Ivica Dačić has said it is " very important for Serbia to respond quickly to starting signal for the beginning of EU accession talks."

(Tanjug)

The country should also "form a negotiating team and determine who will be its chief negotiator."
The Serbian prime minister welcomed EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule in Belgrade on Wednesday, pointing out that "we now officially fall under his department."

The prime minister told a joint press conference after a meeting at the Palace of Serbia that Fule's arrival in Belgrade shows that Brussels too "believes that Serbia will be the 29th EU member."

Fule informed Dačić that he will present the negotiating framework for Serbia to EU members next week.

"I thank Fule for reacting so quickly, after the decision of the European Council to open accession talks, and for coming with a team which already prepared the negotiating framework," Dačić said.

Fule told Dačić that his team has already prepared the framework plan of screening for Serbia, which will start in late September and last for 18 months.

The meeting also discussed which chapters of accession talks will be opened first, Fule added.

"It is very important that the SAA enters into force on September 1, which means that the interim trade agreement will no longer be valid, and this is great progress for Serbia," Fule added.

EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule stated Wednesday that the suggestion is that the issue of the normalization of Belgrade-Priština relations be addressed in Chapter 35, which would be open from the beginning to the end of EU accession talks with Serbia.

"We chose Chapter 35 and proposed to Member States that the same procedures are applied to it as for Chapter 23 - judiciary and fundamental freedoms - and that it is opened on the same principle at the very beginning, stays open throughout the process and is closed at the end, Fule told a joint press conference.

Dačić pointed out that the EU "knows that Serbia will never recognize the independence of Kosovo."

"We expect the negotiating framework not to contain formulations which would imply that Serbia has to recognize Kosovo's independence. This would be absolutely unacceptable for us," the prime minister said.

Fule also stated that Serbia has to appoint a lead negotiator in EU entry talks and put the EU issue at the top of its agenda, and underscored that all agreements in the dialogue with Priština need to be implemented.

Fule said that is a part of the document that contains basic steps that Serbia will have to take, now when the negotiations have opened.

Fule presented the Serbian leadership with the document on Wednesday.

Fule also presented in Belgrade a draft timeline for the screening process, which refers to the reforms that Serbia has carried out and will begin on September 1 and most likely last until June 2015.

Next week, we will present a draft framework for negotiations to the EU member states in Brussels. After a debate, this framework should be adopted with the aim of holding the first intergovernmental conference in January at the latest, Fule said.

Much has been done, but great efforts are needed for the first intergovernmental conference to be held in January, possibly even earlier, Fule said.

Dačić said that Serbia's lead negotiator in EU entry talks should not a high-ranking political figure, as Serbia will have a state delegation that will take part in the talks.

All other bodies that are needed for accession talks have practically been established, he said, adding that a state delegation is yet to be formed and a chief negotiator appointed.

Dačić said that the role of the lead negotiator is very important, so authorities are now considering who could be the best solution for that job.

“We should put forward the best proposal- that is the essence. The negotiator should not be a high-ranking political figure, but rather head of technical talks, as at political level, we will have a state delegation, the prime minister's team and others,” Dačić said.

It is not necessary that Serbia has another politician in the negotiating process, “in a sense that the negotiator should not approach that job in the same way as the political position, but if someone from political circles wants to perform these duties, this will have to be their main job.”

Dačić is of the opinion that the talks should include as many people as possible, so as to mobilize all sectors of the society, including the civil sector, NGOs, various professionals and experts.

On Wednesday, Fule also met with Dačić's deputy Aleksandar Vučić and a number of other ministers.

On Thursday, he is scheduled to address the members of the Serbian parliament and meet with President Tomislav Nikolić.