Dacic: Belgrade is ready for high-level dialogue
Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic said Friday that the Serbian government was ready for taking the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina to a higher, political level, adding that Brussels could not force Serbia to recognize Kosovo's independence.
(KosovoCompromiseStuff) Saturday, September 22, 2012
Speaking in a talk show broadcast by Belgrade's Pink television station, he said Kosovo had not yet been recognized by five EU states and therefore Brussels could not make Serbia do that.
The prime minister pointed out that the relations between Belgrade and Pristina could be further relaxed, but no solution in the dialogue could be considered as permanent if it was not a "proper" one.
"What we can do before the accession to the EU, which means a period of many years, is relax the relations between Pristina and Belgrade in order to come up with certain sustainable solutions for these relations of ours, which means on the one hand that we do not have to recognize the independence, and on the other that by that we will not hinder or obstruct our EU path," said Dacic.
He added that he still believed partition of Kosovo was the only solution and that he was sure the Albanians from Pristina would accept it.
The prime minister said that the current government had taken over the obligations from the previous one and that it had to implement all the agreements from the dialogue if it wanted to be considered a serious government.
Dacic said that he expected a positive European Commission report on Serbia.
The prime minister pointed out that the relations between Belgrade and Pristina could be further relaxed, but no solution in the dialogue could be considered as permanent if it was not a "proper" one.
"What we can do before the accession to the EU, which means a period of many years, is relax the relations between Pristina and Belgrade in order to come up with certain sustainable solutions for these relations of ours, which means on the one hand that we do not have to recognize the independence, and on the other that by that we will not hinder or obstruct our EU path," said Dacic.
He added that he still believed partition of Kosovo was the only solution and that he was sure the Albanians from Pristina would accept it.
The prime minister said that the current government had taken over the obligations from the previous one and that it had to implement all the agreements from the dialogue if it wanted to be considered a serious government.
Dacic said that he expected a positive European Commission report on Serbia.
