2ND EU gives Serbia "new chance" for talks on closer ties

dpa German Press Agency Published: Monday February 12, 2007

Brussels- The European Union on Monday said it was giving EU-hopeful Serbia "a new chance" for talks on closer ties, but stressed that a resumption of stalled negotiations would depend on Belgrade's determination to arrest fugitive war crimes. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who chaired a meeting with his EU counterparts, told reporters that a new Serbian government must "live up to its responsibilities and cooperate with ICTY," the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

"A new reform and Europe-oriented government can make a new start, get back on the road to Europe and regain lost time," said EU enlargement commissioner Olli Rehn, adding, "This new government deserves a new chance."

However, Rehn said that the EU would resume suspended talks with Serbia only if the new government took "concrete action" and showed "clear commitment" in the search for fugitive Bosnian Serb general Ratko Mladic and other key war crimes suspects.

"Full cooperation with ICTY remains the necessary condition for the pace and conclusions of stabilization talks," Rehn stressed.

The 27-member bloc froze negotiations on closer economic and political ties - the first step towards EU membership - with Serbia in May 2006, demanding Belgrade show "full cooperation" with The Hague-based tribunal.

EU foreign policy and security chief Javier Solana said that the bloc had sent "a very clear message of hope to the Serbian people and the government to establish dialogue, so that we can see how we can engage in a closer and deeper relationship with Serbia."

EU foreign ministers also said that they were fully supporting a United Nations plan which sets Serbia's breakaway region Kosovo on the road to independence.

The plans by UN envoy for Kosovo, Martti Ahtisaari, "provide comprehensive arrangements designed to promote in Kosovo a multi- ethnic and democratic society based on the rule of law," they said.

Ministers pointed out that "the proposals create the basis for Kosovo's sustainable economic and political development and for strengthening the stability of the entire region."

Belgrade and Pristina must "participate actively and constructively" in upcoming talks on the plan, EU ministers said, adding that the bloc was ready "to play a significant role in the implementation of the status settlement."

Rehn said he also expected Russia to support the UN plan, arguing that a long-term solution for Kosovo must be backed by all members of the international community.

"Kosovo will be a real test for multilateralism," Rehn stressed.

Russia currently opposes the proposal for Kosovo, arguing it could be a dangerous precedent for other independence-minded regions across the post-Soviet region.

Rehn also called on parties in Kosovo to refrain from violence.

Two people were killed Saturday when Kosovo police used force to disperse a pro-independence protest in Pristina.

"There is no place in Kosovo for violence as a means to secure political support," Rehn said, adding: "Those who endorse violence just damage their own cause."

Ahtisaari, who briefed the foreign ministers on how he intends to push his plan forward, expressed confidence that Russia would give up its opposition to the proposal.

Russia's final stance would only be known until after final talks at UN level, the former Finnish president said in an interview with Finnish broadcaster YLE in Brussels.

Moscow had told him several times that Russia was not more pro- Serbian than Serbia herself, YLE quoted Ahtisaari as saying.

So far, EU governments have been divided over whether talks on the agreement should resume before Serbia hands over Mladic for trial on genocide charges to the court.

UN war crimes prosecutor Carla Del Ponte has warned the EU against resuming talks with Serbia, criticizing Belgrade's failure to cooperate with the tribunal in the search for Mladic.

The final talks, before the plan envisaging Kosovo's gradual independence goes to the UN, were postponed until February 21 at Serbia's request, which has rejected the proposal as "unacceptable."

Albanian authorities in Pristina have accepted the proposal, though some radicals say it does not go far enough in explicitly stating that the mainly Albanian-populated province should be an independent nation.

EU ministers were also expected to push ahead with preparations for an international presence to take control of a UN mission in Kosovo, which has administered the province since 1999.

© 2006 dpa German Press Agency