Dacic expects possible solution for north Kosovo

If Pristina will not accept the Belgrade proposal concerning an association of Serb municipalities in northern Kosovo, the Serbian side cannot accept anything less than that, he said ahead of Serbian top officials' visit to Brussels on Monday. There was a proposal at the last meeting to agree on some general principles and initial that, he pointed out. "The principles did not include executive authority for the Serbs in the north. I did not want to sign. I will never sign anything that is not good for Serbia and that does not ensure the functioning and survival of the Serb community in Kosovo. So, I refused to sign," Dacic told the Blic daily. Belgrade's proposal concerning an association of Serb municipalities is a model that would solve all open issues, especially the one regarding parallel institutions, which the EU insists on, according to Dacic. However, dialogue does not mean that Belgrade is asked to accept the Kosovo Constitution, he added. "I cannot agree to that, because the Serb community would then be left without any authority," he noted. Belgrade offers a sustainable solution and it is important for the people in northern Kosovo to have some power, and not just the power to organize stage shows and issue bulletins," Dacic remarked. "We are in a situation where we have to speak openly with our EU partners about the future of our EU integration and issues from the dialogue. Serbia will not change its views to get the start date for the EU accession talks this summer, but that also does not mean we are giving up on Serbia's European path," Dacic said. The Serbian delegation will reiterate on Monday that Belgrade's proposal is acceptable and Pristina has no reason to turn it down, because other countries in Europe have autonomous regions and cantons, he stated. "Everyone should realize that Belgrade has no power over a large part of its territory and that Pristina does not control a part of the territory it sees as its own," Dacic concluded.