Serbia Will Not Give Up Either On Kosovo Or EU

Serbian President Boris Tadic confirmed Serbia's foreign policy on the Kosovo issue and the wish to join the European Union.

Serbia is not giving up either or Kosovo, the province whose status will be decided by the United Nations, or on the European Union, which has decided to continue the locked negotiations on stabilization and association, Serbian President Boris Tadic said in Helsinki on Saturday. 

“We are not giving up either on Kosovo or on the (perspective) of entering the European Union,” he said in Helsinki, at the end of the talks with Finnish President Tarja Halonen. “Our main strategic goal is to enter the European Union,” he added. 

European Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn announced on Friday that the negotiations with Serbia on stabilization and association would be continued because Zdravko Tolimir, charged with genocide at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), had been arrested the day before.

The EU locked the negotiations in May 2006 because Serbia was not cooperating with ICTY, especially on the matter of the pursuit of the former commander of the Serbian military forces in Bosnia Ratko Mladic. In February, Brussels asked for a clear engagement and concrete, efficient actions from Serbia. 

In the meantime, the negotiations on the future status of Kosovo continue at the United Nations Security Council. Serbia is opposed to Kosovo becoming independent and suggests autonomy. 

Tadic and Rehn talked in the Finland capital on Saturday and they warned that the Kosovo issue and the negotiations between the EU and Serbia were separate matters. They agree that the cooperation of Serbian authorities in looking for war criminals is both Serbia’s and the European Union’s goal. “We will do everything that we can to achieve this cooperation,” said the Serbian President.