LOCAL PRESS

Nikolic: “Serbia and her UNSC friends won’t let Kosovo join UN” (Tanjug)

Kosovo will not join the UN as a member as long as Serbia, and her friends in the UN Security Council, organized as it is now, exist, Tomislav Nikolic has said. “There is great pressure on countries that have not recognized Kosovo to do so,” the Serbian president told reporters in Belgrade on Monday, adding: “All this needs to be withstood, one must fight with all one’s might and never will that so-called state of Kosovo become a member of the UN, as long as Serbia exists, and her friends in the organization of the UN Security Council and its permanent members such as it is now.” According to him, “those are all attempts going in another direction, to face the problem of meeting with representatives of Kosovo almost daily, in various gatherings.”

“We have made a decision not to block them (Pristina) in regional integration – that is what we signed in Brussels, but nothing more than that,” Nikolic said, adding Serbia would rightfully continue to fight and try to keep the so-called state of Kosovo from joining international organizations.

Nikolic said he has been facing “the problem of pressures over Kosovo” since the first day of his mandate, and that he immediately learned from Serbia’s many friends worldwide that there are countries pressuring others to recognize Kosovo. Some countries have yielded to the pressure, and the pressure will continue as it is coming from at least a few centers of power – in particular the United States, Turkey and EU member states, he said. “That is clear to everyone and should not be hidden, and I told that to U.S. Vice President Biden,” he said.

Nikolic added that “everyone carries out their policy” while “the big think they have the right to determine the policy of small states and nations.”

“Because they’re like, on top – and as Njegos would say, ‘the one who stands at the top of a hill even for a while sees more than the one beneath it’. However, there’s also the Latin proverb about a mouse remaining a mouse even when it climbs a hill,” said he.

The president also commented on the Olympics to say he “received assurances that states are not members of the International Olympic Committee, but rather that their Olympic associations are.”

“I asked whether the Olympic Association of Kosovo has its flag, they said it does not. Therefore their female athlete was standing under a flag under which also stand the officials of the interim administration in Pristina,” Nikolic has been quoted as saying by Tanjug.

Asked “whether there is a solution (for Kosovo)” and if it could be contained in a platform that he has sent to the government, Nikolic said this was now in the hands of the government, which is conducting both the country’s foreign and internal policy.

“I no longer have my representative in the negotiations, either. The first platform was adopted in the Assembly and it, like the Brussels agreement, features the Serb community in Kosovo and Metohija as its part. I also went a step further than that, to elaborate on it,” he said. According to the president, the government “probably” has a plant of its own – “into which it has certainly included parts of the platform.”

Nikolic urges unchanged scope of UN mission in Kosovo (Tanjug)

Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic received UNMIK head Zahir Tanin on Monday, reiterating his position on the significance of the role of the UN Mission in Kosovo-Metohija and expressing the expectation that its scope would remain unchanged. “After becoming the head of state, I fulfilled my promise to take the talks with Pristina to the highest political level. The discussions with Pristina are not about how the territory will gain independence but how to enable the citizens of Kosovo-Metohija to live better,” Nikolic said. Making Serbia’s EU accession conditional on its recognition of Kosovo would be inappropriate, to say the least, since five EU member states have not recognized it, Nikolic stressed. Nikolic expressed satisfaction with UNMIK’s status-neutral role and efforts to solve the numerous problems on the ground, an official statement said.

Vucic today with UNMIK head Zahir Tanin (Tanjug)

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic on Tuesday received UNMIK head Zahir Tanin, who congratulated him on the formation of the new Serbian government, noting the government and Vucic himself were generally seen around the world as the greatest support to maintaining regional peace and stability. Ahead of Thursday’s UN SC meeting on a three-monthly report on the work of the UN Mission in Kosovo-Metohija, Vucic and Tanin agreed the cooperation between the Serbian government and UNMIK was good, the government press office said in a statement. Vucic and Tanin, a special representative of the UN secretary general, agreed UNMIK presence was extremely important for maintaining stability in Kosovo-Metohija, both through consistent implementation of UN Resolution 1244 and engagements towards implementing agreements reached in the Brussels dialogue.

Dacic, head of UNMIK discuss UN SC meeting on Kosovo (Tanjug)

Serbian First Deputy PM and FM Ivica Dacic discussed on Monday with Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Head of UNMIK Zahir Tanin the preparations for the upcoming UN SC meeting where a three-monthly report on the mission’s work in Kosovo-Metohija will be debated. Assessments of the current situation in Kosovo, UNMIK activities and the importance of further engagement of this mission in areas which are essential for the survival, normal and dignified life of Serbs and the members of other non-Albanian communities in the province were presented. In particular, the importance of the mission in the context of the implementation of agreements reached in the dialogue in Brussels, as well as the engagement of UNMIK in all issues of significance for a consistent implementation of the UN SC Resolution 1244 (1999) were pointed out.

Dacic, Schlumberger on importance of OSCE mission in Kosovo (Beta)

Serbia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivica Dacic and Head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo Jean-Claude Schlumberger on Aug. 22 voiced their support for the continuation of the mission’s operation in a status neutral manner, in line with U.N. Security Council Resolution 1244. According to the Ministry, during a farewell visit by the OSCE Mission chief, whose mandate expires on Sept. 30, Dacic and Schlumberger highlighted the importance of implementing the Mission’s program in the building of institutions, democracy, respect for human rights and the rule of law. In that context, Dacic especially emphasized the human rights and communities program, which includes oversight of the observation of human rights, the rights of communities and democratic standards in Kosovo.

Stojanovic: Biden removes political dilemma on association of Serbian communities (Beta)

Kosovo Deputy Premier Branimir Stojanovic on Aug. 22 said that, following the visit of U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden to Pristina, there was no longer a political dilemma regarding the formation of the Community of Serbian Municipalities. Stojanovic said he was pleased that everyone had heard Biden’s messages, and he believed it would be as Biden had said, and that within a reasonable period, there would be an energetic start to the implementation of the Brussels agreement. Stojanovic said the fact that certain parties in Pristina had “demonized the Community of Serbian Municipalities,” had been done purely for narrow political interests and not because it was any kind of threat to anyone. “We see the Community of Serbian Municipalities only as an instrument that will help the Serbs to exist and survive, because this framework in which we function today is not enough for the Serbs to exist and survive,” Stojanovic stated.

Vulin: Struggle against Kosovo’s recognition continues, UNESCO vote is proof (Beta)

The Serbian government, despite pressure, is continuing the struggle against the recognition of independence of Kosovo and Metohija, and the results of that struggle can be seen in the UNESCO case, Labor, Employment and Veteran and Social Affairs Minister Aleksandar Vulin, who was once the minister for Kosovo and Metohija, said on Aug. 22. Vulin told reporters that the wave of recognition had been halted while he was at the helm of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, when Belgrade engaged in the dialogue with Pristina and when the international community was being told that the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue would be burdened and damaged in the event of unilateral recognitions of independence, as that also violated the international community’s position on U.N. Security Council Resolution 1244 and endangered Serbia’s position. “You cannot expect us to discuss the normalization of ties and a better quality of life in Kosovo and Metohija, with respect for status neutrality in line with Resolution 1244, while recognizing independence at the same time. A good portion of the international community understood that,” Vulin noted. According to him, that was a rather efficient way, while the struggle has continued with the engagement of diplomacy, which has underlined that international law has to be respected. “After all, the results of the vote in the UNESCO demonstrate the effort invested by the government,” Vulin stressed.

Vucic: In the future ministers will not comment on statements from Croatia (B92, VIP)

Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said that, as of Monday, the members of his government would exert maximum effort to refrain from commenting on negative statements coming from Croatia at Serbia’s expense. Recently, the already fragile relations between Serbia and Croatia have additionally deteriorated, to which contributed the steps of both sides on the political rehabilitation of the figures of World War II, who were in the previous decades considered associates of the Nazis, and the deviation from the anti-Fascist tradition, especially in Croatia with the arrival of the conservative right-wing coalition to power. Serbia and Croatia have regular disputes also about the wars of the 1990s and the war crimes, and nationalist tones are always heightened in the periods on the eve of elections, as is the case now in Croatia where the early elections are coming in September; as well as on resolving some open issues and the marking of the anniversaries of the wars during the 1990s.

In the past couple of months, the foreign ministries of Serbia and Croatia exchanged a series of protest notes, while different ministers in the governments of the two countries presented different accusations against the other country. Following a series of exchanged accusations, in which he sporadically took part himself, Vucic finally announced a different approach on Monday.

“We will refrain (from commenting) not because we are afraid of them, but rather because we wish the policy to stop that wishes to present Serbia and Croatia as two immature countries which are playing a game of ping pong with their statements”, Vucic said at the press conference. He also said that the members of government had, with their statements during the previous days, merely protected the interests of Serbia, the rights of Serbs and the right to dignity and that he stood by all that he had stated so far, for he “only spoke the truth” about the hardships of the Serbs in concentration camps established in World War II by the Ustashas, a Fascist movement which was in power in Croatia during that time; and the military-police action Storm in 1995, by which Croatia regained full control over its territory from the insurgent Croatian Serbs.

He also said that he was sorry that in Croatia they did not want “to look the truth in the eyes” and “renounce their Fascist past” from the period of WWII. “We are not asking of them [to admit] that that was genocide, we are rather expecting repentance and regret for that which had happened, not a glorification of the henchmen. Serbia certainly will not agree to such a policy”, Vucic said.  He added that the policy of regional peace and stability and the protection of sovereignty was “the hallmark” of the Serbian government’s policy.

“We shall continue to nurture good-neighborly relations by the policy of a full preservation of peace and stability on the entire Serbian territory, but also with the policy of preserving a full sovereignty and integrity of our state”, the Prime Minister said.

Vucic said that Serbia had “in the politest possible way responded to all the provocations from Croatia” – which in fact is not true at all, for at least two of his ministers, Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic and Minister of Labour and Social Policy Aleksandar Vulin did not mince words in the previous months in the exchange of comments with Croatian politicians. Ironically, Vucic’s announcement that there would be no more of such reactions ensued only several hours after Dacic had again retorted to the Croatian side, saying that Croatia’s threats to prevent the progress of Serbian towards the EU “as well as the lectures on European values, European rhetoric and European actions, sound more than tragicomically and grotesque”.

In his reaction to the statement of the Croatian Minister of Foreign and European Affairs in the technical mandate Miro Kovac, Dacic said Croatian politics was “currently the greatest embarrassment of the EU itself”, the Foreign Ministry announced. “Croatia’s threats that it will prevent the entrance of Serbia into the EU, as well as the lessons on European values, European rhetoric and European actions, sound more than tragi-comical and grotesque, coming from the Minister of a country whose politics is currently the greatest embarrassment of the EU itself”, Dacic said. In an interview, Kovac said that Croatia “will not stand for intimidation and provocations from Serbia”, which, as he stated, needed “a lot of help and difficult reforms so as to adopt European values, European rhetoric and European actions”.

Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said on Monday that he would probably not take part in the Croatia Forum, an annual international conference held in Dubrovnik, because he can’t see the benefit. “I haven’t taken a final decision yet only because I don’t see what we could do substantially, but I am always prepared to talk,” Vucic told reporters. The Croatia Forum is being held later this week.

Albanian PM backs Serbian-Albanian commerce chamber (Beta)

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama has confirmed e will support the establishment of a Serbian-Albanian Chamber of Commerce. This organization is meant to ensure a more efficient communication and cooperation between businesspeople. The Chamber will contribute to improving trade, investment and economic ties between the two countries, according to a statement issued by the Serbian Chamber of Commerce (PKS), carried by Beta. PKS President Marko Cadez spoke with Rama in Tirana, and also visited Durres as part of preparations to organize a business forum Serbia-Albania.

The event will take place on October 14 in Nis, southern Serbia when Rama and his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic will meet, and when the mixed Chamber, that will be based in Tirana, will officially start working. The establishment of the mixed business association was initiated by Albanian and Serbian businesspeople, supported by the PKS, the Association of Chambers of Commerce of Albania, the Tirana Chamber of Commerce, and other business associations in Albania, according to the statement. Cadez and the President of the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce Safet Gerxhaliu plan to travel to Montenegro today and present the results so far and plans of the Chamber Investment Forum to PM Milo Djukanovic. They will also in the coming period discuss joint projects with the president of the Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro, Velimir Mijuskovic.

REGIONAL PRESS

Session of PIC postponed! (BHT1)

Representatives of the Office of the High Representative (OHR) confirmed for BHT1 on Monday evening that session of the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) dedicated to the announced referendum in the RS on the Day of the RS, which was scheduled for Tuesday, will not be held. “Further consultations are ongoing and more information about the next meeting of the PIC Steering Board at the level of ambassadors will be available soon,” reads a press release issued by the OHR. According to explanations the session was postponed due to necessary additional consultations. N1 television reporter noted that it is still uncertain what kind of stance Russia will present and whether it will disapprove possible ban on the referendum. In fact, Russia is likely to give a dissenting opinion just like at the last session of the PIC SB, when all other member states concluded that the referendum is an anti-Dayton activity that endangers the territorial integrity of B&H. They referred to the Constitution of B&H which clearly reads that decisions of the Constitutional Court (CC) of B&H are final and binding, including the one according to which January 9 as the RS Day is unconstitutional. Bosniak officials have been calling on the PIC and High Representative Valentin Inzko to stop unconstitutional activities of Republika Srpska (RS) authorities. Commenting on decision to postpone session of PIC, leader of SDA Bakir Izetbegovic said that he cannot talk about reasons that led to postponing of the session. Talking about his expectations from announced session of the PIC, Deputy Speaker of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) House of Representatives (HoR) Sefik Dzaferovic (SDA) stated that the international community with “all of its instruments in B&H exists to protect B&H from destabilization and it is time for them to react.” He underlined that only logical decision of the PIC is to abolish decision of the RS National Assembly (RSNA) to organize referendum on the Day of the RS, adding that organizers of such referendum should be processed for acting in contrary to B&H Constitution and Dayton Peace Agreement (DPA). Chairman of the Main Board of SDP Sasa Magazinovic stressed that local elections cannot be held under current circumstances, adding that PIC should abolish aforementioned decision of the RSNA. DF’s Damir Becirovic underscored that it is hard to predict what decision PIC will adopt, due to mutual relations among members of this body. He explained that there is lack of will within PIC to let High Representative to act freely.

RS politicians send letter to HR stressing they will not give up on referendum (FTV)

Preparations for holding of the referendum on Republika Srpska (RS) Day are underway in the RS. According to the statements coming from the RS politicians, they will not give up on the referendum announced to take place on September 25. They stressed this in an open letter sent to High Representative (HR) Valentin Inzko on Monday, noting that the RS will not accept for the referendum to be cancelled. “All political structures in the RS, i.e. all parties registered in the RS, voiced commitment to hold the referendum that passed all legal procedures on September 25 – the day set by the decision of the RS National Assembly (RSNA)”, RSNA Speaker Nedeljko Cubrilovic told reporters on Monday. Dissatisfied with Inzko’s recent statement that the referendum on the RS Day is an anti-Dayton act, RSNA Deputy Speaker Nenad Stevandic said in the aforementioned letter that Inzko promotes the stances of (SDA leader and Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Presidency member) Bakir Izetbegovic, the aim of which is to destroy the RS. The RS officials also stressed that the right to referendum guaranteed by the Constitution jeopardizes nobody, reminding of the obligation of the Central Election Commission (CEC) of B&H to send voters’ lists to the RS in order for the referendum to be held.

HDZ B&H leader Covic: RS has right to organize referendum (Glas Srpske)

Croat member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) and HDZ B&H leader, Dragan Covic gave the interview to Glas Srpske daily. Covic said that he does not believe it was necessary to convene a session of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) dedicated to referendum on the Day of Republika Serpska (RS). “If PIC meets, it would have to put several other topics on the agenda as well, as it would be inappropriate (…) to once again exert pressure when it suits political Sarajevo”, Covic explained. “Nevertheless, decision of the Constitutional Court of B&H is the key and regardless of how it was made and what the voting looked like, it should not be discussed but implemented. But it in no way diminishes the possibility of the RS to state its opinion about each and every issue of interest to the RS. Now it is only a matter of the skill to define the question about which one wants to hear the opinion of the majority of the RS’ citizens”, Covic said, adding that he hopes the RS “will know how to define everything in the right way, so that it in no way challenges the decisions of the Constitutional Court”. “Everything else is a matter of democratic principle. In Switzerland, which has a much higher level of democracy, referendum is organized about every possible issue (…) I see no reason why PIC should convene to discuss whether some municipality, canton or entity should have its own day and mark it”, concluded leader of HDZ B&H, adding that there would be no such problems if the state-level Law on Holidays had been adopted sometime in the past.

Karan: City, municipal referendum committees to be formed in day or two (Srna)

Special city and municipal committees to implement the referendum on Republika Srpska (RS) Day are expected to be formed in a day or two, according to Sinisa Karan, the chairman of the Committee on RS Day Referendum. “The Committee is carrying out all the planned activities according to a defined plan and dynamics. Some decisions were executed on time, including the Government’s decision to adopt a financial report for the holding of the referendum on RS Day,” Karan told reporters in Banja Luka following a Committee meeting on Monday. According to him, activities concerning the development of the voting materials are underway.

“There is absolutely no legal basis for the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) not to submit us the final voter list because the B&H Election Law obliges them and all other bodies to provide all the necessary information. If it fails to send us the list, we will consider other options, but it would be a gross violation of the law on its part,” Karan warned. He reiterated that the CEC had not received the order of the Brcko District Supervisor banning the referendum on RS Day and that despite everything, the referendum will be organized for the people holding RS citizenship outside the District territory. Commenting on the Peace Implementation Council, which is supposed to have a meeting in Sarajevo on Tuesday, Karan said it was an ad hoc body and that it did not have any formal, legal, legislative or executive power over the sides in B&H. “Regardless of the political decisions that the PIC might make, they will not be an obstacle to holding the referendum on RS Day,” Karan said.

The Council of Ministers of B&H to discuss the Coordination Mechanism today (Klix.ba)

At the meeting of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H), which will be held today in Sarajevo, the only item on the agenda will be adoption of the coordination mechanism, as confirmed from the Office of Chairman of the Council of Ministers of B&H, Denis Zvizdic. Coordination mechanism was agreed on the 17th of August at the meeting in Sarajevo that was attended by Chairman of the Council of Ministers Denis Zvizdic, his deputies Vjekoslav Bevanda and Mirko Sarovic, and the Prime Minister of Republika Srpska (RS), Zeljka Cvijanovic, and the Prime Minister of Federation of B&H, Fadil Novalic. This mechanism involves the efficient connection between different government levels in B&H in order for the country to form a unified position regarding certain issues related to European integrations.

Person suspected of setting Orthodox church on fire arrested (TV1)

Members of Sarajevo Canton (SC) Ministry of Interior (MoI) arrested on Monday a person suspected of setting part of Orthodox Holy Transfiguration Church in Sarajevo on fire on Sunday morning. According to unofficial information the arrestee is homeless man.  TV1 learns that suspect is not of Bosniak ethnicity and he was identified with help of video surveillance footage. After interrogation, he will be handed over to SC Prosecutor’s Office. Reporter noted that this church was attacked for 40 times since 2000. Officials and citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) condemned aforementioned incident. Orthodox priest Cedomir Djelmo denied claims saying that setting the church on fire spread fear among Serb population. “People are little bit sad because this happened”, explained Dzelmo. Head of the OSCE Mission to B&H Jonathan Moore said that any attack to any religious object in B&H is “source of fear” and contributes to increase of tensions. He added that it is important in cases like this one for authorities in B&H to act fast and professionally. Also, SC Prime Minister Elmedin Konakovic announced that SC Government will allocate funds for reconstruction of damaged part of the church. High Representative Valentin Inzko expressed concern with aforementioned incident. He called on politicians not to misuse it for political purposes.

Croatian PM: As far as I know, Vucic is coming to Dubrovnik (Hina)

Prime Minister Tihomir Oreskovic on Tuesday said that as far as he was aware, his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic is coming to the Dubrovnik Forum 2016, adding however that that was not definite yet. “As far as I know, Vucic is coming, but that isn’t definite yet, considering that the format of the summit has changed,” Oreskovic told reporters after meeting with cattle breeders. “This time the forum will not be of prime ministers but a ministerial forum which is going to be headed by (Deputy Prime Minister) Bozo Petrov. Naturally, I will be there but we don’t know whether that level will suit others,” Oreskovic said.

Relations between Croatia and Serbia have been at a very low level over the past few weeks, marked with an exchange of diplomatic notes, inflammatory rhetoric and mutual accusations, threats and acts of provocation. This has escalated over the past few days in the wake of Vucic’s sharp rhetoric at a memorial for victims of the WWII Ustasha Jasenovac concentration camp on Friday, when he claimed that Croatia was reviving Ustasha sentiment.

Oreskovic said that it was sad that certain tensions existed between Croatia and Serbia, but that Croatia will stand its ground. Leader of the Croatian Democratic Party of Slavonia and Baranja Dragan Vulin on Tuesday called on Oreskovic and the state leadership to promptly withdraw Vucic’s invitation to attend the Croatia Forum in Dubrovnik because of his latest statements about Croatia and to declare him persona non grata as well as to recall Croatia’s ambassador in Belgrade and to break off diplomatic relations with Serbia.

HDZ chief rules out grand coalition (Hina)

Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) leader Andrej Plenkovic on Monday said that a big coalition with the SDP-led People’s Coalition would not happen because there won’t be any need for it, adding that he believed that the next prime minister should come from that party that gets the most votes. Plenkovic made the statement at the presentation of the HDZ and Croatian Social Liberal Party (HSLS) election platform in constituency I, underscoring that elections aren’t held so that “in the end we come to agreement on policies in parliament.”

“Elections are held so that we can present candidates, ideas, platforms and then it is up to the Croatian voters to elect those people they believe will implement that platform,” he said, adding that he did not consider HDZ had any obligations toward the Bridge party for any difficulties that may have arisen during their previous cooperation.

“I believe that the prime minister should come from that party that gets the most votes and with the backing of other parties, create a majority in parliament,” Plenkovic said, adding that there would not be any more experiments.

He assessed that the prime minister must have partisan authority and electoral legitimacy. “They are the two essential aspects that HDZ will insist upon,” he said and underscored that that was required for democracy to function normally.

Plenkovic, who took the helm of the HDZ in late July, stressed that he had consolidated the party and that the HDZ now knows what it wants and with which people and how to implement its platform. HDZ will forecast political stability, security and the rule of law in Croatia and will work on eradicating corruption, Plenkovic said, adding that small and medium-sized businesses were the European backbone and will be for Croatia’s economy.

Plenkovic presented all 14 candidates for the constituency including HSLS leader Darinko Kosor who said that his party was and remained a credible partner to the HDZ.

SDP stays in the government, although “no one from Petrovic dynasty ruled as long as DPS” (CDM)

Ranko Krivokapic has made the same decision as Miodrag Lekic had seven days ago. SDP stays in the government of electoral trust, the head of the party confirmed at a press conference in Podgorica. “The presidency of the party has suggested staying in the government even though DPS violated the agreement on free and fair elections. We will help preventing damages and abuses”, said Krivokapic.

SDP will also recommend non-partisan ministers to stay in the government.

The party has also decided to run independently in the elections on 16 October.

“We are confident that there will be a peaceful change of power in Montenegro. We are preparing to take responsibility. We are aware of that. This country should be returned to its citizens. We have achieved strategic objectives: independence and NATO membership. Now we need to turn the state back to its citizens”, he said. He is not concerned because the opposition will not run in the elections together. “Since Petrovic dynasty, nobody has ruled as long as DPS or had more power than DPS”, said Krivokapic.

Vujovic: SDP runs independently because Demos does not want to form a civic coalition (CDM)

SDP’s decision to stay in the government and to run in the elections on 16 October independently is expected, analyst Zlatko Vujovic told CdM news portal. “It will be a challenge for SDP to run in the elections independently. This decision is the result of Demos’s inability and disinterest to make a civic coalition, which would involve the parties that founded so-called ‘troika’ which entered the government”, Vujovic said. He added that it would be interesting to see how URA and SDP would act during the campaign, since they fight for the same voters. “On the other hand, it will also be important to see the position Demos will take. We need to see whether its negotiations with SNP are true or just a ploy to reduce hostility of key opponents in the campaign”, he said. Vujovic also said that Krivokapic’s statement that no member of Pertovic dynasty ruled as long as DPS should not take seriously, since the very Krivokapic’s party was on the power with DPS almost all the time. “Now every party wants to present their moves in the best possible way”, Vujovic said.

Independent figures will leave the government if they do not get support from entire troika (Dan)

Independent figures in the government of electoral trust asked the opposition troika to support their straying in the government. Otherwise, they will leave the government. According to the information obtained by Dan daily, that is the epilogue of last night’s meeting between the independent figures in the government and representatives of the three opposition parties, signatories of the agreement on creation of conditions for free and fair elections in Montenegro in 2016. Currently, the independent figures in the government are the deputy prime minister Milorad Miso Vujovic, minister of labor and social welfare Boris Maric and minister of agriculture and rural development Budimir Mugosa.

SDP leader Ranko Krivokapic has confirmed at a press conference in Podgorica today his party will stay in the government of electoral trust. In early August, URA Civic Movement decided to leave the government of electoral trust, as the party put it, because of a drastic violation of the agreement on free and fair elections. On 14 August, Demos decided to remain in the government, in order, as stated, to contribute to preventing all forms of malpractice in the election process.

INTERNATIONAL PRESS

Serbia Joins US Military Drills in Germany (BIRN)

Serbian troops will join US-organised multinational exercises this month – an indication that although the country’s military collaborations with Russia grab headlines, it works more closely with the US.

Serbian troops will participate in a multinational tactical exercise called ‘Combined Resolve VII’ organized by the US Army’s European Command at the Hohenfels military base in Germany from August 27 until September 15, the Serbian defence ministry told BIRN.

“The aim of the exercise is the improvement of the interoperability and mutual understanding of the members of the land forces of our partners in operations at the tactical level in a multinational environment,” the defence ministry said, adding that this kind of exercise is held by the US Army twice a year in Europe. The Serbian Army will send no more than 100 troops, as it has done to several previous exercises in Hohenfels. “The United States armed forces will bear the costs of travel, accommodation, meals, the use of training grounds and the other costs of our forces’ engagement during the planned conferences and exercises,” the defence ministry said. Taking part in the exercises will be more than 3,100 participants from 20 countries – Italy, Armenia, Belgium, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Hungary, Ukraine, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Polish, Romania, Slovenia, Ukraine, Montenegro, Norway, France, Spain, the US and Serbia.

In September and October, Serbia will also host Russian Army troops in two separate exercises, Slavic Brotherhood 2016 and BARS 2016. Although joint military exercises with Russia generate more public attention, Serbia’s most significant military cooperation is with the US.

Katarina Djokic, a researcher from the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy, told BIRN that Serbia is trying to balance its military cooperation with both NATO members and Moscow, but military exercises with Russia are covered more widely by the media. “Generally, cooperation is balanced. However, cooperation with Russia is in certain media more Djokic said.

According to defence ministry data, Serbia has 127 joint military activities planned with the US in 2016. Defence Minister Zoran Djordjevic and Serbian Army Chief of Staff Ljubisa Dikovic said in a statement in March after meeting US Deputy Assistant Defence Secretary Michael Carpenter that “bilateral military cooperation is the most developed segment of the overall relations between the two countries”. Serbia proclaimed a doctrine of military neutrality in December 2007 and the current government under Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic has announced no plans to change the policy. However, the country is linked to NATO through the alliance’s Partnership for Peace programme. In March 2015, Serbia concluded an Individual Partnership Action Plan with NATO, considered the highest level of cooperation with NATO for a non-member country.

Opinion about NATO has been deeply divided in Serbia since the Western alliance launched air strikes against the former Yugoslavia during a 78-day bombing campaign in 1999, forcing Serbia to withdraw from Kosovo. Kosovo was then placed under international administration and declared independence in 2008. Many Serbs remain bitter about the loss of the province, regarding it as the “cradle” of Serbian nationhood. According to public opinion surveys conducted earlier this year, 80 per cent of Serbians are opposed to Serbian membership in NATO. On the other hand, an opinion poll conducted in February in Serbia by the research company Ipsos Strategic Marketing suggested that almost two-thirds of respondents had far more positive attitudes about Russia than they did about the EU, the US, or NATO.

Nearly 74 per cent of the total number of respondents supported a potential alliance with Russia.

Republika Srpska Self-Determination Vote Possible – Dodik (Sputnik)

The Republika Srpska (RS), the majority-Serb entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H), does not exclude the possibility of national self-determination referendum in future if the Dayton Agreement is violated, President of RS Milorad Dodik told Sputnik.

The RS plans to hold a referendum on September 25 on the RS Day to be celebrated annually on January 9. RS does not agree to celebrate the national day of B&H on the March 1 as on that day, in 1992, B&H Parliament proclaimed the independence of B&H without the presence of B&H Serbs. The RS believes that B&H could block the decision of the referendum that could be considered a violation of the Dayton Agreement that ended the B&H War. “This (self-determination referendum) is not excluded neither by them (B&H) nor by us. This is an absolutely legitimate political issue that can be discussed. It is not on the agenda at the moment, although such possibility should not be excluded in the future. It is either a compliance with the Dayton Agreement, or a referendum as the most meaningful way of expression of national will,” Dodik said. The President of RS also said that RS Day referendum would put an end the humiliation by B&H authorities. “Decisions of Constitutional Court of B&H, which are taken by three foreign judges and two Bosniaks, are considered to be democratic, although they undermine the constitutional character of the RS and the Serbian nation of B&H. The violation of the Dayton Peace Agreement. Referendum is exactly the answer to their haughtiness regarding both the international agreement and the RS”. The RS is one of the two autonomous entities of B&H, while the other is the Federation of B&H. Their relations are largely affected by the civil war among Serbs, B&H Muslims and Croatians in 1992-1995. On November 21, 1995, a three-year civil war in the Republic of B&H ended between the Serbians, the autonomous B&H Muslims and the Croats, by reaching a ceasefire agreement at the US military base in Dayton, Ohio. The Dayton Agreement aims to promote peace and stability in B&H and to defend the regional balance between B&H and the RS.

Serb referendum splits B&H’s international overseers (BIRN)

The US, EU, Russia and other international powers which are guarantors of Bosnia’s peace agreement are struggling to agree on concrete action to stop the Bosnian Serbs holding an ethnically-divisive referendum.

The referendum planned in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (B&H) Serb-dominated entity of Republika Srpska (RS) is to be discussed at a session of the Peace Implementation Council, PIC – an ad-hoc group representing countries and international organizations overseeing Bosnia’s peace agreement and the work of the Office of the High Representative, OHR, which is responsible for its continued implementation. The meeting was initially scheduled to take place in Sarajevo on Tuesday, but the OHR postponed it until further notice to allow more time for consultations, international officials told BIRN. Despite repeated warnings from Western and Bosniak officials, the RS authorities are determined to hold the referendum on September 25. They are seeking public backing for the annual Day of RS to continue to be celebrated on January 9, despite the fact that it was ruled discriminatory and thus unconstitutional by B&H’s Constitutional Court. The decision to go ahead with the vote has split the international community, which at this stage has no consensus on possible sanctions, a Western diplomat told BIRN on Monday. There is a rift between the West – which has already condemned the referendum as illegal – and Russia, which has in the past supported B&H’s Serb-dominated entity’s right to self-determination, the diplomat said. But even some EU and NATO member countries, while condemning the referendum, are strongly against any use of the OHR’s executive powers in an attempt to prevent it, he added. Some of these countries believe that B&H has grown to the point that it should not be micro-managed by the international community. An additional reason for their objections to the use of OHR’s powers is their concern that the OHR has no means to guarantee the implementation of any of its decisions. This could encourage Bosnian Serb or any other local leaders to flatly ignore its decisions or escalate the crisis further, they fear. “This situation puts the OHR in a no-win situation,” another diplomat told BIRN. “If the OHR fails to react to the referendum, then this effectively means the end of the OHR. Yet if it imposes sanctions on RS, and cannot see them through, that also means the end of the OHR,” the diplomat said. The international community, as well many Bosniak leaders, hoped that US Vice-President Joe Biden, during his visit to Belgrade last Tuesday, would raise the issue and convince Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic to persuade RS President Milorad Dodik to call off the referendum. Yet these hopes have so far remained unfulfilled. After the meeting between Biden and Vucic, neither of them mentioned the referendum, and since then, RS officials reiterated their determination to hold the vote, adding that Serbian officials will not meddle in their internal affairs. Bosniak officials meanwhile have warned that the referendum could be a prelude for another popular vote on the independence of Republika Srpska from B&H. Bosniak officials have said that in that case, they would be willing to defend the territorial integrity of their country. “This [referendum] is some kind of test balloon,” Bakir Izetbegovic, the Bosniak member of the tripartite state presidency and the leader of the main Bosniak party, the Party of Democratic Action, told Anadolu Agency on Saturday. Izetbegovic warned that unless the crisis is resolved soon, it could “slowly plunge (the country) into conflicts which later you will be unable to halt.”

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