Bozidar Djelic est le vice-premier ministre serbe chargé de l'intégration européenne. Il s'est confié à EurActiv Serbie le 27 août. La transcription suivante est en anglais. Il s'agit d'une traduction du texte original en serbe qui a été approuvée par ses bureaux.
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How do you rate German Chancellor Merkel’s recent visit to Belgrade and the conditions she spelt out regarding Serbia's relations with Kosovo in the context of European integration?
We are satisfied with the fact that the visit allowed for the expression of opinions without any delay and for Mrs. Merkel and President [Boris] Tadic, in direct contact, to clarify their positions and better understand why one side is expressing the opinion it has.
The most important thing for me is that agreement was reached on intensifying communication on Kosovo between Belgrade and Berlin in the coming days and that we will hold a top-level meeting in Berlin immediately after the unveiling of the European Commission’s opinion to review the implications of that opinion.
Of course, with Serbia’s goal being the obtaining of EU candidate status and defining a date for the beginning of membership talks.
Will the positions voiced by Merkel, that Belgrade should accept the annulment of parallel structures in northern Kosovo and the operations of EULEX in the entire territory of Kosovo, affect the gaining of candidate status?
If we are talking about EULEX, Serbia accepted EULEX’s presence as part of the U.N. secretary general’s six point plan and it is inambiguous that EULEX came to Kosovo to strengthen the rule of law, and that is something that is in the interest of the Republic of Serbia, the region and Europe and we support that. At the same time, it should do so in a status neutral manner, because that was the only way for EULEX to be established by the EU, which is not united on the matter of Kosovo. Five EU member countries have not recognized the independence of Kosovo and in order to secure a consensus over the deployment of EULEX, it was defined as status neutral.
I have to say that during this crisis, EULEX on several occasions overstepped the boundaries of that mandate and we clearly pointed that out to Mrs. Merkel and all those watching this situation. Serbia supports the work of a status-neutral EULEX and we will work on that path. Therefore, in that sense, if we recall the basis on which EULEX arrived in Kosovo, what its mandate is, what its objective is – to strengthen the rule of law in Kosovo, then we can work on that basis.
We have been called on to resume the dialogue; we initiated that dialogue, hence it is important not to turn the dialogue into grounds for blackmailing Serbia. If it is set up in an asymmetrical way, where Belgrade has to accept everything Pristina demands, then it is no longer a dialogue, it is blackmail.
In that sense we are coming out of what was agreed in the UN, which is a mutual dialogue without the forceful changing of the situation on the field and without blackmailing into finding solutions. We are ready for that dialogue.
As far as these so-called parallel institutions are concerned, we made it clear to the German chancellor that the institutions in question were elected by the citizens and have democratic legitimacy. It is no secret that a number of mayors do not always have identical views as those of the Serbian government, but there is legitimacy and it must be acknowledged.
Hence the idea of abolishing such institutions is an anti-democratic aim. It is very important to admit that, if we want to build democracy in the Balkans, the institutions supported by the citizens must be respected.
The European policy is a democratic policy, which is why Serbia is ready for a dialogue on all open issues, but not in such a way that unilateral actions, which can lead to violence and the loss of lives, are favored and not in a way that democracy is negated.
How realistic is it to expect a solution for the customs stamps in the next round of talks with Pristina, given that the topic has already been discussed, that both sides insist on their own principles and that the situation on the field has worsened in the meantime?
We were close to a solution and we can only regret the fact that Pristina has decided to take unilateral action, that it has decided to use special forces, which led to great tension and difficulties, not only for Serbia but for the whole region as well. Unnecessary pressure was created and over the course of the crisis, which lasted for a few weeks – with tension still present – we constantly called for peace and dialog and we expect the new round to help resolve that issue as well.
Do you think a positive opinion of the European Commission will be enough to bring the two sides closer to a solution or will the finding of a solution be the sole condition?
I think Serbia cannot be asked to do the impossible. Through the submission of a resolution in the UN with all EU countries, we initiated that dialogue and took part in it as the side that always came in with concrete offers and solutions, which we knew could also be acceptable to Pristina. We did not offer something we knew in advance would be unacceptable to them.
But at this moment it is very important not to take advantage of the expectation of obtaining EU candidate status to potentially put inappropriate pressure on us, to try to pull out something that crosses the red lines of our policy, because that simply will not be possible.
Of course, in that infavorable case Serbia would be affected, but I am deeply convinced that the entire region and the whole idea of Europe in the Balkans would also suffer. Today that risk is more prominent than before and it is obvious that Pristina and some circles in Europe are playing the card of Serbia caving in to immense pressure and the desire to become a membership candidate. That is a non-European and harmful policy.
In such circumstances, is it realistic to expect Serbia to get a date for the beginning of negotiations?
If we look objectively at what was agreed in December, there is no doubt that Serbia will earn candidate status and, bearing in mind the standards for other countries, we will also earn the date for the beginning of accession talks. We will see, however, what will happen at the summit in December.
Preparations are underway for the first Serbia-EU Forum, which you are announcing as a traditional event that will take place once per year. How was your initiative received in the EU?
Above expectations, in the sense that we will have more than 30 European MPs who have already applied for attendance, the entire European Commission structure that deals with us and the region and, of course, our officials. The event will take place under the auspices of [Serbian President Boris] Tadic, who will open it together with European Council President Herman Van Rompuy. Serbian Parliament Speaker Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic will also participate in the event and will talk with Mr. [Martin] Schulz, who is the future speaker of the European Parliament.
These are all positive circumstances that have led to the signing up of more than 500 people. The interest of international media is also enormous, so I think we have hit that format and the right time, because it was not easy to find a moment in the already packed calendar of various events when Serbia could, like Bled (Forum) in Slovenia or Dubrovnik in Croatia (i.e. Croatia Summit), have a new event that would focus on the European path of the whole Western Balkans.
Because that is our goal, to make the first Friday of September each year from now on the moment when all who are interested in the future European road of Serbia and the Western Balkans know that they should come to Belgrade, where they will hear many interesting things, meet many interesting people and hold bilateral meetings alongside the formal program.
The point is to establish that forum, which will help Serbia and the Western Balkans show the rest of Europe how far they have come and add, so to speak, that element of support that is necessary for the important decisions that European institutions traditionally make in December.
I expect it to be a great success. Of course, at this time of crisis nothing is easy and we would have been happy if Mrs. Merkel had arrived in Belgrade with much better figures of German growth, because the general situation in Europe is not good and that, of course, has an impact on the mood within Europe and the matter of enlargement. But the crisis will pass one day and I expect the tradition of the Serbia-EU Forum to persevere.
You have also announced the participation of businesspeople in that forum. Which leading businesspeople are you expecting?
We will primarily have the directors of domestic and foreign companies in our country and the region and all those who follow our region, in a business sense, from the EU. We will also have the possibility, like in the [World Economic] Forum in Davos, to see a dialogue between the carriers of economic policy, businesspeople from the country and the region and investors, plus people from the academic world, the media and the NGO sector, in which they are considering what could be improved in our country.
After the plenary session that will be opened by the presidents Tadic and Van Rompuy, we will have a panel discussion with ministers from the region and we have also invited colleagues from Turkey and Iceland in order to gather all countries in the process of accession, and then we will have four panel discussions – one on the economy and infrastructure, one on social inclusion, one on environmental protection and one on security and the fight against corruption and organised crime.
So we have four major topics and at the end of the event there will be a geopolitical plenary session on where the region is headed, where Europe is headed and what ideas are good, and I am sure we will get some good ideas for next year’s forum there.
