LOCAL PRESS

Djuric: Urgent revision of EULEX necessary (Radio Belgrade)

The Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric has advocated an urgent revision of EULEX in Kosovo and Metohija, and for the judicial organs to examine the allegations carried by Politika, accusing this mission’s prosecutor of forging evidence in the case against Oliver Ivanovic. “Ivanovic is the most moderate politician in Kosovo and Metohija and keeping him in jail is a blow to the rule of law,” Djuric told Radio Belgrade’s live broadcast. He thinks that it is very important for the judicial organs to examine Politika’s allegations since, as he put it, at issue is the oldest newspaper that would not publish such information if it didn’t have evidence for that.

UK foreign secretary congratulates Serbian PM on reforms (Novosti)

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic had talks in London with UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, who congratulated him on the successful implementation of economic reforms and progress in the realization of European standards. Hammond stressed that a flexible job market was important for foreign investors, who are crucial for economic growth. He added that stability in the Western Balkans was a priority of the British government and that Serbia should play a key role in the region. Vucic stressed that regional stability was the key to success and that, through joint projects, Serbia was trying to promote economic cooperation, which would lead to the improvement of the economic situation in the region. Vucic also officially invited the British PM to visit Serbia.

Dacic: Messages more important than program of Rama’s visit (RTS)

Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic said in an interview to the RTS’ foreign policy broadcast “In the World” that the program for the visit of Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama on 10 November was being prepared and that it was certain that Rama would visit Serbia. Rama will be accompanied by the ministers of foreign affairs and economy, who had visited Belgrade several days ago. Dacic confirmed that one of the proposals of the Albanian side is the visit to Presevo. He recalls that some other Albanian officials used to visit Presevo and Bujanovac in the past.

“The question is not whether someone should go there, but what messages will be sent. We expect that the messages will be in line with the publicly voiced principle and goal of this visit, which is development of our good relations,” said Dacic.

Dacic receives ambassadors of African Arab countries (Tanjug)

Serbia Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic held a meeting on Wednesday with 15 Ambassadors of the group of African Arab countries in an effort to further strengthen Serbia’s position in Arab countries, and improve bilateral relations with African partners. The meeting brought together Ambassadors of Algeria, Angola, Guinea, DR Congo, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Nigeria, Palestine, Syria, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Foreign Ministry stated. Dacic underlined that Serbia wants to maintain and improve its traditional ties with the states of Africa and the Arab world and voiced readiness for further improvement in economic cooperation with these countries. During the meeting, the Minister announced changes in Serbia’s visa regime that will facilitate business and other contacts between Serbia and these countries. Ambassador of Palestine Mohammed Nabhan and Ambassador of Algeria Abdelkader Mesdua put forward proposals for further improvement in communication between the Serbian Foreign Ministry and the Embassies of the group of countries. It was agreed that the meetings in this format should be held regularly, reads the statement.

Jahjaga will not take part in Belgrade gathering (B92)

Kosovo President Atifete Jahjaga will not be traveling to Belgrade this weekend, B92 has learned. Jahjaga was to attend a meeting of a trilateral commission that will be held from 31 October until 2 November. Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic will attend, as will Transport Minister Zorana Mihajlovic. According to announcements, other participants will include former Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, Goldman-Sachs chairman Peter Sutherland, and Belgian central bank governor Luc Coene.

Joksimovic: Economy in enlargement policy focus (Tanjug)

Minister for EU Integrations Jadranka Joksimovic said that Serbia was not heading for the EU because of the deadlines, but for the sake of a more functional and better life of Serbian citizens and that the European economy stabilization concept coincided with reforms in Serbia. The EU is just an additional goal and framework pushing us to be faster, she told Tanjug, adding that it was thus that she understood the messages of the new EU Commissioner for the neighborhood and enlargement negotiations Johannes Hahn. Hahn clearly promotes the continuation of EU integrations and the enlargement policy, but sets clear criteria, she said. The criteria for new candidates will accordingly shift towards economic criteria, which coincides with Serbia’s internal reforms, she underlined.

REGIONAL PRESS

SDA receives nine mandates for B&H House of Representatives, SNSD six (Fena)

The Central Election Commission (CEC) of Bosnia and Herzegovina announced the confirmed results of the general election held on 12 October according to which the Party of Democratic Action (SDA) and the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD) received the most mandates for the House of Representatives of the B&H Parliamentary Assembly. Member of CEC Irena Hadziabdic said that a total of 42 mandates are designated for this level of government, including 28 for the Federation B&H and 14 for the RS. SDA received most votes in the Federation, 274,057 which entitles them for nine mandates of which seven are direct and two are compensational. “The Democratic Front (DF) won 150,767 votes which entitles them to five mandates of which four direct and one compensational while the Alliance for a Better Future of B&H won 142,003 votes which entitles them to four mandates of which three are direct and one is compensational,” Hadziabdic said. The coalition HDZB&H, HSS, HKDU B&H, HSP dr. Ante Starcevic, HSP Herceg-Bosna won 119,468 votes which entitles them to four regular mandates while the Social Democratic Party (SDP) B&H won 92,906 which entitles them to three mandates of which two are direct and one is compensational. Hadziabdic added that the Croatian Democratic Union 1990 won 40,113 votes which entitled them to one compensation mandate as well as the B&H Patriotic Party (BPS) which won 32,866 votes while one direct mandate is reserved for the Party of Democratic Activities (A-SDA) which won 22,088 votes. Regarding the RS, Hadziabdic said that 14 mandates are secured, nine regular and five compensational while SNSD, which won 249,314, received the majority of mandates, six of them. There are five regular mandates and one compensational. The Serb Democratic Party (SDS) won 211,603 votes which entitled them to five mandates of which four are direct and one is compensational, while the PDP-NDP won 50,338 votes, which entitles them to one compensational mandate. The Democratic National Alliance (NS-SNS) won 37,072 votes which entitled them to one compensational mandate and SDA won 31,658 votes which also entitles them to one compensational mandate.

Izetbegovic: The reality is that Bosniaks will not abolish RS, Serbs will not abolish B&H, and the Croats will not get an entity (BHRT)

The newly elected Bosniak member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Bakir Izetbegovic said in an interview with BHRT that everyone in this country will have to accept certain realities – Bosniaks not to abolish the Republika Srpska (RS), Serbs not to abolish B&H and the Croats not to make a third entity. “Within this reality we will all have to make a middle ground, living with two other ethnicities and powerful group of other citizens,” Izetbegovic said.

He claims that Dragan Covic will have to reduce his demands to rational levels and to what is acceptable for Bosniaks, and it is a mechanism that will allow Croats to choose whom they want, but not with some drawn up map or constituency that will segregate someone. Izetbegovic said that the most likely state-level coalition is with the parties from the family of European people’s parties, to which belong the PDP, HDZ and SDA. “We would have been pleased if the bloc SDS/PDP won in the RS. We will see if they have the power to make a majority in the parliament. But in any case we will respect the will of the people and we will cooperate with the SNSD. We expect at the same time Mr. Dodik to be more constructive. They unnecessarily destroyed a lot of things in the state parliament, and caused damages to us and to themselves, to B&H and the RS,” said Izetbegovic. Izetbegovic considers there is very little chance that the Federation of B&H will cooperate with the Alliance for a Better Future-Radoncic. The reason is the Radoncic’s dirty campaign, which Izetbegovic calls a sick phenomenon that has to be addressed, without specifying how. The only options are, considers Izetbegovic, the Democratic Front – Zeljko Komsic, SDP should have a rest. Izetbegovic very clearly says that the SDA aspires for the position of Chairman of the Council of Ministers, and the most powerful executive office in the Federation. It belongs to us as electoral victors, claims Izetbegovic.

Alliance for Change: Everything is in our hands (Oslobodjenje)

Alliance for Change stays together, because it is formed on a platform of political changes, said the leader of the Serb Democratic Party (SDS) Mladen Bosic and called on other parties to join them in discussions about forming a government. “We’ll talk to all who think that the RS needs changes. We will not talk with those who created the foundation on which crime and corruption flourish, meaning we will not talk with the SNSD,” Bosic said, adding that the SDS has serious doubts regarding the results of Ognjen Tadic in the presidential race in RS. “Every day we are getting more and more evidence of irregularities related to the counting of votes, and the last are examples of polling stations in Visegrad, Prijedor and Bijeljina. Therefore, we will file a complaint to the B&H Central Election Commission. We’ll see whether it will be accepted, except the recount, we will ask for the expertise of invalid ballots for the RS president. It is essential that these elections have their legitimacy,” said Bosic. For this reason, the Alliance for Change still does not recognize the victory of Milorad Dodik, the RS President. Saying that, “according to the results of the B&H Central Election Commission, Dodik slipped through the eye of a needle,” Bosic added that his election result is not only a result of his work, “but of all of those who could be brought to sit on his tray of the scale.” Neither Putin, nor Red Star nor Tomislav Nikolic are disputable as much as contentious public support from Serbian Patriarch Irinej. We will therefore turn to the General Synod,” said Bosic. Commenting on the statement of the SNSD leader, that his party supported by the DNS and the Socialist Party has a majority with 42 seats in the RS National Assembly, Bosic said that for now these are just Dodik’s claims. “As far as I know, no official statements have been given by the DNS or the SP,” added Bosic, and ruled out the possibility that any of the Alliance members will accept Dodik’s call for the forming of a new majority in the RS, because the SNSD is no longer in position to impose conditions. “He must now beg for all political support, as well as the representatives of the Bosniak parties, to ensure a stable majority. This situation is a defeat for him and for the SNSD, who will be in the B&H House of Representatives with 25 percent less members. That is why I emphasize that Dodik is no longer the ruler at the B&H level,” said Bosic. Mladen Ivanic said that from the position of a member of the B&H Presidency he is going to fight that the Alliance for Change together with parties from the Federation of B&H forms the Council of Ministers. “My victory obliges me to do that. At the same time I expect all parties to comply with the agreement signed in the presence of the European people’s party signed before the elections, in order to continue cooperation and together form a government,” said Ivanic, adding that these expectations are directed primarily to the leader of HDZ B&H, Dragan Covic . “After his public statements, that power must be held by the parties who were elected by the people, it will be interesting to see how much courage will Covic have to take upon himself the responsibility of deciding who are the legitimate representatives of the Serb people,” concluded Ivanic.

INTERNATIONAL PRESS

Serbian prime minister grilled on press freedom at London event (indexoncensorship.org, by Milana Knezevic, 29 October 2014)

Controversy surrounded Aleksandar Vucic’s Monday night lecture at the London School of Economics

It wasn’t quite a remote controlled drone carrying a provocative political message, but Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic’s Monday night lecture at the London School of Economics (LSE) came with its own controversial incident.

“What can you say about the total censorship of all opposition media”, Vucic was asked by a young woman in the audience just as the premier sat down for the question and answer portion of the event. She explained that she was representing Nikola Sandulovic, an opposition politician from the Serbian Republican Party, who was sitting beside her. Sandulovic said later he had travelled to London to confront Vucic.

Chaos ensued. Sandulovic claimed, among other things, that a police officer connected to Vucic had threatened to kill him and that he had evidence contained on a CD he held aloft. Vucic hit back that the Republican Party had only 0.01% of public support, and disputed Sandulovic’s assertion that he had been an adviser to former Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic, who was assassinated in 2003. Accusations flew across the room until LSE’s moderator James Ker-Lindsay finally managed regain control of the situation.

After the event, Sandulovic told Index he came to London because the media in Serbia ignore him and his party, apart from when government-friendly outlets attack him.

That press freedom was a popular topic on the night did not comes as a surprise. Serbia has seen a string of censorship incidents during Vucic’s time in power, as Index and many others have reported.

The prime minister himself brought up the press in his introductory lecture. He explained how his government has passed several new laws aimed at improving the media landscape, and complained that despite this, they are “scapegoated”. He directly addressed the recent controversial cancellation of a political talk show, Utisak Nedelje (Impressions of the Week), saying authorities have been subjected to a blame campaign for what was a commercial decision. Supporters of the show, including host Olja Beckovic, say it was down to political pressure.

In a joking reference to his infamous role under Slobodan Milosevic, he said he had been the “worst minister of information”. Curiously, he also used this former job as a counterargument to critics, arguing that his past had made it easy to blame him for any instance of censorship.

But this didn’t seem to stop the press-related questions, though none of the journalists present were chosen to ask one. Apart from the memorable Sandulovic intervention, an audience-member pointed out that Utisak Nedelje wasn’t the only show to have been taken off air in recent times.

If there was an overarching theme to the night, it was that it seemed to showcase different — some would say conflicting — sides of Vucic and his administration. He reminded the audience that Belgrade had recently organised a successful Pride parade, before adding that he didn’t want to attend. To have that choice, he argued, was a real mark of freedom.

There were, of course, questions about the football drone. While Vucic said he didn’t want to share his own views, he said UEFA (European football’s governing body) saw Serbia’s side of the story by awarding them the win, before pointing out that Serbia carries its share of the responsibility. The planned state visit from Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama — the first in 68 years — will go ahead, he also confirmed, despite the post-drone postponement.

In response to questions about relations with Russia — just weeks after the Belgrade military parade where Vladimir Putin was the guest of honour — he said the two countries would continue to build their relationship, but that this would have no impact on Serbia’s ultimate goal of European Union accession.

Much has been made of Vucic’s apparent journey from Milosevic man to EU enthusiast. He seemed to reference this as he said he is “not perfect” and that he works “every single day” to change and better himself. But on Monday, he left more questions than answers about the direction he is taking Serbia in.

Serbia Seeks Swift IMF Loan Deal to Lure Investors, Premier Says (Bloomberg, by Agnes Lovasz and Gordana Filipovic, 29 October 2014)

Serbia is aiming to reach an agreement on a loan with the International Monetary Fund by the end of the year to improve the country’s image with potential investors, Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said.

The Washington-based fund said yesterday it’s sending a mission to Serbia next month to assess the economy and negotiate a new loan program with the nation’s leaders. The country seeks a “precautionary” loan for three or four years, the size of which has yet to be determined at the talks, Vucic said in an interview in London yesterday.

“It is very important for our country because it will secure a stable environment for all possible investors and people will know that we are committed and very dedicated in our process of reforming the country,” Vucic said. “We are the first country in southeastern Europe to have launched consolidation measures with no pressure from outside. We have a lot of support from the IMF, World Bank and other financial institutions.”

Vucic’s six-month-old cabinet is seeking to lure investment to kickstart a recovery as the biggest former Yugoslav country grapples with its third recession since 2009. The nation, which started talks to join the European Union in January, slipped to 91st from 77th among 189 countries in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business report published yesterday.

Vucic this month urged lawmakers to approve spending cuts to rein in a widening budget deficit and win the IMF’s financial backing. The lender suspended a precautionary loan program in February 2012, when Serbia slipped on its fiscal performance before a general election that year.

Budget Shortfall

The 2014 shortfall is projected to be 7.6 percent of gross domestic product by the country’s Fiscal Council, which the government pledged to narrow by 700 million euros ($892 million) or about 2 percentage points of GDP.

Serbia plans to lower the budget gap to about 2 percent to 2.5 percent and reduce public debt to “sustainable levels” by 2017, Finance Minister Dusan Vujovic said yesterday in London.

The country has a fiscal deficit problem and no liquidity issues and it has access to international capital markets for borrowing, Vucic said. Serbia held four Eurobond sales between September 2012 and November 2013, raising $4.25 billion.

The government has recently unveiled plans to raise 1.25 billion euros in a Eurobond sale, which Vujovic said Oct. 22 will happen before the end of 2014. The premier said yesterday his assumption is it will take place in the first quarter of next year.

The yield on Serbian dollar bonds maturing in 2021 fell one basis point, or 0.01 percentage point, to 4.83 percent, by 5:25 p.m. in Belgrade, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The economy will contract 0.3 percent or 0.4 percent in 2014, before expanding 1.2 percent next year, according to the government. Growth will accelerate to 1.6 percent in 2016, it estimates.

Vucic reiterated the country seeks to join the EU by 2020.

European Union lifts freeze on Milosevic family assets (Reuters, by Ivana Sekularac, 29 October 2014)

BELGRADE – The European Union has lifted a freeze on the assets of late Serbian strongman Slobodan Milosevic and his close family, saying the people targeted no longer posed a threat to democracy.

Ousted from power in 2000, Milosevic died in 2006 while on trial in The Hague for war crimes including genocide during the violent break-up of Yugoslavia in the 1990s. His wife and children fled to Russia.

Reformers who succeeded Milosevic accused him and his cronies of stealing millions of euros from Serbian state coffers and smuggling suitcases of cash to Cyprus. Official investigations, however, went nowhere.

In a decision taken on Tuesday and published on Wednesday, the European Council said there were no grounds to continue the freeze on assets held by Milosevic and his closest associates. The Council argued that he, his family and several former close allies “no longer represent a threat to the consolidation of democracy.”

It is not known what assets the family would now have access to as a result of the ruling by the Council, which groups the heads of state or government of the bloc’s 28 member countries.

The EU imposed the freeze in 1999, when NATO carried out an 11-week air war to halt the killing and expulsion of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo by Serbian forces under Milosevic waging a brutal counter-insurgency campaign.

Milosevic was already an international pariah for stirring war in Croatia and Bosnia, where Bosnian Serb forces committed the worst war crimes on European soil since World War Two including the killing of 8,000 Muslim men and boys in the United Nations-designated “safe area” of Srebrenica.

Zarko Korac, a minister in the first post-Milosevic government in Serbia, condemned the European Council’s decision as proof that “crime pays.”

“I feel furious and cheated,” he said, speculating that much of the money stolen under Milosevic’s regime had found its way back through the purchase of state firms privatised in the years that followed his ouster.

“We can only guess how much money was taken, but it’s certainly in the billions,” he said.

The Socialist Party once led by Milosevic, and now part of Serbia’s pro-EU governing coalition, welcomed the decision. “If any of it was true, it would have been proven,” the party said of the accusations against Milosevic.

Serbia is setting out on talks to join the EU but is not expected to become a member until after 2020. (Editing by Matt Robinson and Mark Heinrich)

Mladic Witness: Hunger Deaths Were Propaganda (BIRN, by Denis Dzidic, 30 October 2014)

A defence witness told former Bosnian Serb military chief Ratko Mladic’s trial that Bosniaks lied about deaths from hunger during wartime in a bid to win international support.

Slavko Kralj, a former Bosnian Serb Army liaison officer working with the UN’s protection force in Bosnia, UNPROFOR, told the Hague Tribunal on Wednesday that Mladic had the authority to stop any humanitarian convoy entering Bosnian Serb territory during the war, but only did so with good reason.

Kralj testified that the Bosnian Serb army never stopped humanitarian convoys for no reason, but only after receiving information there were banned items inside. On Tuesday he claimed that aid convoys transported munitions and food for the Bosnian Army.

Asked by prosecutor Peter McCloskey whether Mladic would have been the one to make the decision whether or not a convoy should be allowed through, the witness replied that this was true, but added that the former Bosnian Serb military chief only did this with good reason.

Kralj also testified that Mladic wasn’t always aware of all the information about convoys since he had other tasks as well.

Prosecutor McCloskey showed the witness a photograph from 1995, saying that it shows Bosniaks from Srebrenica digging through trash for food, and quoted Mladic saying that the enclave was only attacked after humanitarian aid was restricted for months.

Kralj said he was seeing the picture and heard Mladic’s statement for the first time.

“I know nothing about the photograph, it could be a fake for all I know,” he said.

“I never saw this statement, nor do I know if Mladic had any general opinion towards convoys,” he added.

Asked whether he believed that anyone starved to death during the war, the witness said that this was just propaganda.

“I am very sceptical that anyone died. I believe this is the standard propaganda of the opposing side, which wanted intervention by the international community. I don’t believe anyone died from hunger during the war,” he said.

According to Kralj, after NATO forces bombed Serb positions in 1995, the Bosnian Serb Army considered them “enemies”.

He said they had operational information that some members of the UNPROFOR peacekeeping force were “equipped to guide NATO airplanes to strike targets”.

Mladic is on trial for genocide in Srebrenica and several other municipalities, terrorising the population of Sarajevo, restricting humanitarian aid and taking UN peacekeepers hostage. He is also accused of the persecution of Bosniaks and Croats from municipalities under Serb control.

The trial continues.