LOCAL PRESS

Vucic: Encouraging statement by Juncker (RTS) 

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has stated that the statement by European Commission (EC) President Jean Claude Juncker – that Serbia could join the EU before 2025 – is very encouraging for citizens. “It seems to me that we have received for the first time a clear vision of our future,” he said. He says there is still a lot of work ahead of Serbia, so we need to be courageous and resolute and try to do everything in order to become an EU member by 2023. “I think this is possible. I am not promising, but I think it is possible by 2023. Everything always depends from us and our work, but also from the decision of the member states, as well as from the relation towards Kosovo and Metohija, let me be quite frank. But it is encouraging for citizens that they were able to hear that the EC is counting on Serbia as a member before 2025,” he said. He reiterated that we need to talk on how we are to resolve relations with Pristina, which citizens need to know and understand.

Joksimovic: Juncker’s comment is very positive (Tanjug/TV Pink)

Serbian Minister for EU integration Jadranka Joksimovic has stated that the statement by European Commission (EC) President Jean Claude Juncker – that Serbia could join the EU before 2025 – is very positive. According to her, this only strengthens the conviction that Serbia is on the right path. “President Juncker with this message in fact shows that the EU still has leadership capabilities, and is counting on Serbia as part of its leadership capabilities, both now, and in future when we become an EU member. I think this is one very good message,” Joksimovic told TV Pink.  She remarked that dates have been discussed – but it hasn’t been specified whether it will be before or after 2025, because these are not dates inscribed in that way.

Dacic: We have big hole in diplomatic relations (Beta/B92/TV Pink)

Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic thinks Serbia has a big hole in diplomatic relations, because it underestimates some countries – that are her friends. Speaking for TV Pink, Dacic said this concerns those countries to whom Tito still means something, and who have great positive memories from past relations with Yugoslavia. “If you never go to Bangladesh in 20 years, then they lose the understanding that some issues are important for you,” he said.  He said that from 2008 to 2012, Kosovo was recognized by 85 countries, but that from the moment he became the minister of foreign affairs, Kosovo was recognized five states, one of which in the meantime revoked that decision. Dacic also said that Pristina’s decision to postpone the application for Kosovo’s admission to UNESCO was Serbia’s big victory.  “There was a plan of the State Department about who would vote in what way in UNESCO, it is our big victory, we defeated the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Turkey, Saudi Arabia – not Hashim Thaci or Beghjet Pacolli,” Dacic said. He added that Serbia achieved this victory by talking, persuading, being dedicated.

Dacic also said that Ukraine’s allegations of concern over Serbian mercenaries taking part in the fighting in Donbass on the Russian side are designed to additionally pressure Serbia to distance itself from Russia. “We’re supposed to become a victim of the conflict in Ukraine, and the problems that exist in relations between the West and Russia,” Dacic said, adding that Serbia wants good relations with Ukraine, but would not be a victim of some other international relations. He added that US official Brian Hoyt Yee was unable to scare Serbia, let alone the ambassador of Ukraine. Dacic said that for Serbia takes it as a great commendation that both the West and the East, Washington and Moscow, agreed that Belgrade is the place to conduct peace talks on Ukraine. “I am not sure that Ukraine is too pleased with this and that it is satisfied with the positions in those talks… They do not like such a position of Serbia,” Dacic said and added that the next meeting of the special envoys of the US and Russia for Ukraine, Kurt Volker and Vladislav Surkov, will be held on November 13 in Belgrade.

Commenting on Ukraine’s announcement that it will continue to work with European partners on the issue of Serbian officials with links to Crimea, Dacic said that the question is whether it is a bilateral problem between Serbia and Ukraine, or if Serbia should pay for international relations that have nothing to do with it. He added that Serbia has prosecuted dozens of people for participation in the fighting in Crimea and in Donbass, while Ukraine did not prosecute its mercenaries who participated in the persecution of Serbs in Croatia in the 1990s. Dacic also said that Ukraine’s ambassador, Oleksandr Aleksandrovych, said he was going to Kiev for consultations, and that he received information from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine that Aleksandrovych would be out of the country. Dacic remarked that his decision to summon Serbia’s ambassador in Kiev to Belgrade for consultations was news number 50 in Serbian media – while it was actually very important news.

Antic: Serbia leader in energy cooperation with China (Tanjug)

Serbian Minister of Mining and Energy Aleksandar Antic said that at Wednesday’s meeting of energy ministers of China and 16 countries of Central and Eastern Europe in Bucharest, it was concluded that Serbia is the county in which China is implementing the largest number of projects in infrastructure and energy. He said that the first phase related to the revitalization of blocks B1 and B2, worth approximately $300 million, has been completed at the Kostolac Thermal Power Plant. Antic explained that the second phase is underway and it involves the increase of production of coal from Drmno mine from 9 to 12 million tons a year and the construction of a new 350 MW power plant. The entire project worth more than $700 million, he specified. According to him, at the meeting of energy ministers it was noted that the mechanism of cooperation, established at the initiative of China, has two key effects – strengthening cooperation with China and strengthening regional cooperation. He noted that energy security and supply security are regional issues and that they cannot be viewed in isolation. At the moment, Serbia has three serious interconnections that are in the process of construction or consideration. It is an electricity connection with Romania, a gas interconnection with Bulgaria, and we hope to continue the joint plans for the gas interconnection with Romania, Antic said. Also, as he stated, at the meeting it was decided to establish regular cooperation at the level of energy ministers, and that the Energy Centre of Romania assumes an operational role in that process.

Todoric: Oath of Serb judges in Kosovo violates Serbian Constitution (N1)

The oath taken by Serb judges and prosecutors before the Kosovo President will be declared non-constitutional, it is only a question of when this will happen, Vladimir Todoric, member of the presidency of the People’s Party (NS) led by Vuk Jeremic. The NS has formed a Committee for the judiciary and announced that its first move will be to submit an initiative for assessing the constitutionality of oath-taking of Serb judges in Kosovo, which this party considers to be a violation of the Serbian Constitution. Todoric says that the judges who had taken an oath before Hashim Thaci have violated the oath that they had taken before the Serbian parliament. “That decree is not only non-constitutional, but it also abolished Serbian judicial institutions on the territory of Kosovo, after the institutions of the Serbian Interior Ministry had been previously abolished,” said Todoric. According to him, the Serbian Constitution has been violated not only now, but with a series of decrees ever since the Brussels agreement was signed. According to him, the assessment of the Constitutional Court is very important. “Not only in view of practical implementation. We have requested the Constitutional Court to immediately abolish, before it passes a decision, the implementation of all individual acts, including the one on the retirement of judges and prosecutors, over the damages that might be suffered,” said Todoric, adding that the decision of the court is also important over the issue of political and criminal responsibility for all people who are taking part in this process. Todoric stressed there is not a single reason outside the legal ground to knowingly violate the law, because this could create a precedent that could be used in other cases where the law is violated.

REGIONAL PRESS

Dodik wants to initiate adoption of changes to Constitution of RS (Oslobodjenje)

President of Republika Srpska (RS) Milorad Dodik announced that creation of the new constitution will start in the RS in 2018. The new constitution, according to Dodik, will “not be a separatist one”, but will allow the issue of secession to be addressed as well. General consensus is that the RS needs new Constitution, because the current one – adopted in 1992 – has a total of 140 articles and more than 120 amendments adopted through 17 constitutional changes, and the general practice is to start working on the new constitution as soon as the number of amendments reaches half of the number of articles of the existing constitution. However, representatives of opposition parties in the RS believe that initiation of the process is nothing more than a part of Milorad Dodik’s political game “aimed at amusing the public, after the story about the referendum on the Court and the Prosecutor’s Office has failed miserably”. “We can talk about necessary changes to the Constitution of the RS, but only after the general elections in 2018. According to daily, the majority of representatives in the RS Assembly first have to approve the proposal to create changes to the Constitution of the RS; then, the Draft Constitution of the RS needs to be adopted by the simple majority of representatives in the RS Assembly. And finally, after public discussion, the RS Assembly Commission for Constitutional Issues is supposed to send the Proposal of the Constitution of the RS into the parliamentary procedure, but now it has to be adopted by two-third majority, both in the RS Assembly and the RS Council of Peoples (CoP), and also from each of constituent peoples and the ranks of others.

Dodik: Serbia and RS are one, borderline is formality (Nezavisne)

The RS President Milorad Dodik stated that Serbia and RS are one and it is less important where the formal borderline would be drawn. We do not recognize this border in our subconscious, although formally speaking in the international legal sense, it exists, Dodik stated.

Dodik’s statement comes after the announcement of Belgrade that the border demarcation between Serbia and B&H would be expected by the end of this year. He underlined that the border between B&H and Serbia needs to be corrected whereat parts that are vital for functioning of traffic infrastructure should be attached to the country, i.e. referring to Belgrade – Bar railway.

Washington and Dayton agreement have been violated mostly to detriment of Croats (Dnevni list)

Chairman of the Croatian Parliament’s Commission for Croats Outside Croatia and Chairman of the Main Council of the Croat People’s Assembly (HNS) Bozo Ljubic, said the Croatian Parliament should soon hold a session dedicated to the status of Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H), relations between B&H and Croatia and the overall situation in B&H, especially in context of its European path. Ljubic argues that the Washington and the Dayton agreement have been violated, mostly to detriment of Croats, which is why Croatia, as a signatory of the agreements, must raise the issue. According to him, the Croatian Parliament will discuss these issues in early December the earliest, revealing that the document he is preparing is entitled ‘Declaration of the Croatian Parliament on B&H, Croats in B&H and European Path of B&H’.

Any asymmetric solution is not acceptable for SDA (Radio Sarajevo)

Vice President of SDA and deputy speaker of B&H House of Peoples (HoP) Safet Softic stated that Chairman of the Council of Ministers (CoM) of B&H Denis Zvizdic and Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic should urgently meet. According to Softic, statements of Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic about radicalism in B&H, political drama about the construction of the Peljesac Bridge and signing of the agreement on construction of gas pipeline between Croatia and Republika Srpska (RS) have made relations between the two countries go cold, which is why he sees a solution in the meeting between Zvizdic and Plenkovic. Asked if there is parliamentary majority at the state level, Softic said that unlike in the B&H House of Representatives (HoR), the majority functions in the B&H HoP. He further noted that the Croat Caucus in the B&H HoP went with changes to the Law on Elections because of political reasons, which created a bad atmosphere, arguing that proposal of changes to the Law on Elections, submitted in that way, is destined to fail. Softic stressed it is the Inter-departmental Working Group, which is tasked with preparing changes to the Law on Elections, that is the right place to harmonize solutions, including implementation of rulings passed by the Constitutional Court of B&H and the European Court of Human Rights. When it comes to a possibility that members of the Presidency of B&H are elected indirectly in the B&H parliament, Softic says the indirect election has its advantages and shortcomings. “What is the problem is that both blocks from the RS, SNSD and Alliance for Changes, categorically reject such a solution. I think it is hard to reach a political agreement in the matter. When it comes to SDA, any asymmetric solution is unacceptable,” said Softic.

SBB B&H cannot support proposed changes and amendments to the Law on Elections of B&H; SDP, DF present their own proposal (Fena/Dnevni avaz)

Representative in the B&H House of Representatives (HoR) Damir Arnaut told that SBB B&H representatives cannot support proposed changes and amendments to the Law on Elections of B&H, which will be discussed at the next session of the B&H HoR. Arnaut stressed that the international community was clear, namely that any changes related to election of members of the Presidency of B&H have to include rulings of the European Court of Human Rights in cases ‘Sejdic and Finci’, ‘Pilav’, ‘Zornic’ etc. “If changes to the Law on Elections maintain the discriminatory model, then we cannot accept that”, noted Arnaut. Meanwhile, SDP B&H and DF held a joint press conference today in Sarajevo. Party leaders Nermin Niksic and Zeljko Komsic, as well as Chairs of SDP and DF respective Caucuses in the Federation of B&H HoR, Elvir Karajbic and Dzenan Djonlagic addressed the media and presented the proposal of the Election Law. Komsic said that their proposal is realistic and democratic. The Proposal refers to constituencies in the Federation of B&H and it is submitted into the parliamentary procedure. Niksic said that the proposal aims to regulate election of delegates for House of Peoples and it is in line with the Constitutions, principles of the ruling of the Constitutional Court of B&H upon the motion filed by Bozo Ljubic, as well as principles of the Venice Commission. He further stressed that the Law on Constituencies in the Federation of B&H regards to 1991 census, considering that this is defined by the Constitution of B&H. This proposal is presented to the US Ambassador Maureen Cormack and Head of EU Delegation to B&H Lars-Gunnar Wigemark, who will evaluate the law.

Doris Pack: Dodik is useful idiot for Russians (NAP)

German politician (CDU) and former Member of European Parliament, Doris Pack said that she cannot imagine for Republika Srpska (RS) to be independent or to join Serbia. “Serbia will not want this, because they want to join the EU ad will not look back on change of borders. RS President Milorad Dodik is a player on political field, he is first laud and then quit. I think that he should receive harsher responses, more frequently, in order to withdraw a bit”, said Pack.

“I cannot evaluate him differently than as such that he always tried to justify his opinion and he always underlined it with Serb-hood. This much hatred is not in Serb interest”, said Pack, adding that it is in Serbs’ interest for this country to be country of Serbs, Croat and Bosniaks.

“He is not important for Russians alone, but Russians are creating problems for the EU wherever they can. Perhaps he is a useful idiot for them. That is a German idiom for a man who can be manipulated for other purposes. Putin does not care what happens with the RS, not a pfennig of Russian money will come to this region. Even every Serb, who is leaving the RS, is not going to Russia, but to Germany, Austria or Switzerland. Politicians use that to play their games here and in order to destabilize this country,” said Pack.

Self-proclaimed imam from B&H planed attacks in France (Glas Srpske)

In cooperation with Switzerland law enforcement agencies, French police carried out a counter-terrorism operation, which resulted in arrest of ten members of the terrorist cell, whose leader is self-proclaimed imam, of B&H origin Abdal Al-Bosna. Daily noted that Abdal is Swiss citizen and lives in Switzerland, with his two children and Columbian spouse, who was also arrested. Daily also noted that arrested persons are mostly French citizens, who were unable to depart for Syria. Police found dozens of encrypted messages that they have exchanged, where they talk about suicide attacks and other attacks in France. Terrorists used the encrypted application ‘Telegram’, where Abdal gather around group of ISIL supporters and where he promoted violent activities.

President sharply criticizes government (N1)

In her speech in Opatija at the annual conference “Economic Policy of Croatia in 2018”, President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic criticized the current situation in Croatia more sharply than ever before. “We’ve been staying in one place for too long, and other countries are overtaking us,” said the President, who spoke openly about all the negative indicators in the economy and society. The President criticized more or less all aspects of society. She admitted that in the last few years, nothing much had been done and that promises have remained unfulfilled. “If we want to have an objective view, we have to position ourselves in the context of the neighboring countries, and our results gain real value only when we compare them with the competition,” the President said. “Croatia has one of the worst ratios of exports compared to GDP in Central Europe. If we look at exports of goods, without services, the ratio is even worse. While we used to be more developed, nowadays we’re at 85 percent of the development of Central and Eastern Europe. We’ve got one of the lowest rates of labor activity. The share of people at risk of poverty is among the highest in the EU,” said Grabar-Kitarovic. “Structural reforms have become so abstract that they’re not being perceived by the public. There are lists of recommendations, but few are ever achieved, and now we come to the question of who is making decisions and where, and who isn’t making them. I think that might be the largest problem ahead of us,” said Grabar-Kitarovic in a thinly veiled criticism of the government.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic was asked for his comments on the President’s speech. He said he did not hear the speech because he attended a parliamentary session. However, he said that he doesn’t see anything dramatic happening in Croatia.

Many issues brought up in parliament at last question time in 2017 (HRT)

PM Andrej Plenkovic was defending the actions of his government regarding the Agrokor concern and Lex Agrokor, as well as the results that his government has managed so far in responding together with his government colleagues to some 41 questions on the agenda.

Among others questions thrown at the PM was that of SDP MP Sinisa Hajdas Doncic who quizzed the PM about the economic results that are not progressively improving and wondered if the PM was a magician or the Croatian PM. The PM was quick to respond by saying that Croatia had managed to exit the excessive deficit procedure during the rule of the current government and added that this did not happen by pure chance, but said that this was the result of the good macroeconomic and fiscal policies of the Croatian government.

SDP’s Gordan Maras said that according to the latest polls some 78 percent of those surveyed did not trust the current government and asked the PM whether he did not feel uneasy when boasting about the results, when regular citizens are not feeling any improvement in their everyday lives, but the PM brushed aside the survey results saying that it was just a quick-fire questionnaire. Harsh words were traded between SDP MP Zeljko Jovanovic and Health Minister Milan Kujundzic. The two debated the current situation in the indebted healthcare system. Jovanovic accused the HDZ government of not introducing any reforms.

MOST’s Tomislav Panenic noted that Croatia was dropping on the World Bank list of countries that are good for investing in with Croatia falling 8 places this year. The PM was quick to note that the tax reform and its effects had not been incorporated in the results.

IDS’s Boris Miletic accused the government of deciding to tolerate fascist values in society. PM Andrej Plenkovic said it was not true that the government was not putting out a clear stance towards the crimes perpetrated by the Ustashe regime. This resulted in Miletic demanding the PM explain why the government had not done away with the disputed HOS plaque bearing a fascist slogan, instead of just moving it to a different location.

Djonovic convinced in DPS victory: Russia will try to influence the formation of the Montenegrin government (CDM)

I am convinced that DPS leader Milo Djukanovic is fed up with politics and that he is quite honest when he says his choice is to withdraw from public posts. However, if he was running for the president of Montenegro, I really do not know which opposition candidate might endanger his victory, says political analyst Ranko Djonovic. He expects the Bosniak party and minority parties to support the DPS presidential candidate. Nevertheless, Djonovic does not rule out the possibility that Russia, like last year, will try to influence the formation of the Montenegrin government and destabilize the BS through Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. “Moscow might try to get assistance in that mean action from Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan or by Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama. So, they will seek help wherever they can. However, if the Bosniaks are thinking with their own heads, as they have done so far, in the interests of Bosniaks and their state of Montenegro, they will refuse to serve other peoples and someone else’s authorities,” he said. Otherwise, Djonovic believes, we will all be losers in Montenegro.

Swiss Ambassador, NDI representatives hail Macedonia’s democratic progress (MIA)

There is a tangible progress in dealing with challenges after the changes in Macedonia and now is the right moment for strengthening the Parliament’s capacity, which will contribute to the realization of ongoing democratic processes in the country, Swiss Ambassador Sybil Suter Tejada and representatives of the National Democratic Institute (NDI) said Wednesday at a meeting with Prime Minister Zoran Zaev. They also welcomed the government’s policies for inclusion of the civic sector in making decisions significant for citizens. However, they said, the Parliament is in charge of adopting, amending laws and hence the entire society should take part in building functional parliamentary mechanisms. “The government also invites the opposition and all experts or expert groups to join in and contribute to building a healthy democratic society, which is in favor of citizens’ living standard and Macedonia’s Euro-Atlantic integration processes. In this respect we are committed to enhancing the parliament’s capacity and stand ready to work with NDI and all of those who can grant assistance to that effect,” Zaev said.

Zaev, Baily: Macedonia to focus on reforms after successful local elections (MIA)

After the successful local elections conditions have been created for the government to focus on current, upcoming reforms, Prime Minister Zoran Zaev and US Ambassador Jess Baily agreed at a meeting on Wednesday. Baily congratulated Macedonia on the successful administration of the local elections, saying that the state institutions to implement the recommendations of OSCE/ODIHR observers, the government said in a press release. Special attention should be also paid to the part of the rule of law covering the fight against organized crime and corruption at national and local level. After the political crisis and successfully administrated elections, the government must turn its full attention to speeding up the economic reforms and EU, NATO – integration processes, Zaev said.

Dimitrov: Name negotiators set to meet by late November (Meta)

This month there shall be a meeting between negotiations teams. During the first phase, there will not be a visit on part of the mediator, Matthew Nimetz, announced the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikola Dimitrov. When asked how he would comment the statement of the US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Hoyt Yee, who remarked that the mood for solving the name dispute is on its highest level, Dimitrov said that “despite the nice words he would like to have constructive stances.” “It’s a fact that for a longer period, the process was on hold, but apart from the name dispute, there are other obstacles in the Euro-integration processes. There are serious efforts for the country to remove these obstacles. With the new political situation, there is a political will and optimism to overcome them” said Dimitrov. He stressed that it is more important what is being done instead of what is being announced. “Our policy is to take away the arguments and the reasons for those that would wish the block on our Euro-Atlantic journey to remain,” said Dimitrov.

Xhacka meets Stoltenberg: Albania, a worthy NATO ally (ATA)

Albania will continue to be a worthy ally and make a contribution to peace and security over the North Atlantic Alliance space and beyond,” said Albania’s Defence Minister Olta Xhacka during a meeting in Brussels on Wednesday with Secretary General of the NATO Jens Stoltenberg. At a meeting on the sidelines of the two-day ministerial at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, Minister Xhacka assured the NATO’s head of Albania’s commitment to making a significant contribution to peace in the context of the Alliance. Later on the day, Minister Xhacka also met the UK Defence Secretary Gavin Willliamson who evaluated highly Albania’s considerable contribution as a NATO-member country. He highlighted especially Albania’s contribution to the British-led Spearhead Force, known as Very High Readiness Joint Task Force, irrespective of the country’s budgetary restrictions. According to Williamson, the joint exercises have served to increase interaction between the two ally countries. And the Joint Albanian-British Exercise “Albanian Lion”, planned to take place next year in Albania, is a significant step in this direction. Minister Xhacka expressed grateful thanks to Willliamson for British support to bilateral relations in the field of defense. She mentioned training of Albanian servicemen in the UK and re-opening of the UK Defense Attaché Office as concrete steps of bilateral cooperation.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA SOURCES

Serbian foreign minister recalls Belgrade’s envoy to Kiev for consultations (TASS, 9 November 2017)

BELGRADE, Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic on Wednesday has withdrawn the ambassador to Ukraine, Radet Bulatovic, for consultations on pressing issues of relations with Kiev, the Foreign Ministry said in a report.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry earlier recalled the Ukrainian ambassador to Serbia, Alexander Alexandrovich, in the wake of his anti-Serb and Russophobic declarations that had whipped up a diplomatic storm. “Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic has recalled the ambassador to Ukraine, Rade Bulatovic, for consultations in the wake of pressing issues on relations with Ukraine,” the report said. “Diplomatic missions in other countries have the task of establishing better bilateral relations”. “Serbia is committed to building relations with Ukraine based on the principles of mutual respect but it will not let anyone turn it into a victim of collateral damage in international relations, to which it has no connection,” the ministry said. The statement said Serbia had repeatedly stressed since the beginning of the crisis and during the course of its rotating presidential term in the OSCE that it respects Ukraine’s territorial integrity. Also, Belgrade took a range of important steps to investigate the activity of Serbian citizens who had taken part in armed conflicts abroad, including Ukraine. In this way, it demonstrated its respect for its international legal commitments. “With that in mind, the Serbian Foreign Minister pointed to the participation of Ukrainian mercenaries in the crimes that the Croats had committed against the Serbs in Croatia, but unlike Serbia, Ukraine never condemned them,” the statement said. On November 2, Serbia’s Foreign Ministry commented on numerous anti-Serb and anti-Russian remarks made by ambassador Alexandrovich, saying they were inadmissible and obscene. The ministry’s State Secretary Ivica Toncev issued a special statement in connection with Alexanrovich’s allegations and urged the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry and cabinet of ministers to point out the flaws in his behavior. Alexandrovich claimed in a number of flagrant interviews that Serbia was not conducting an independent foreign policy and that it served as a handy instrument for Russia, which was destabilizing the entire region of Western Balkans and thus destroying Europe. The scope of very unsubstantiated claims he made included the statements on the ‘destabilizing Serbian factor’ in Macedonia, on the fanning of tensions in relations with Croatia and on Serbian extremists’ interference in a coup attempt in Montenegro, among many other things. Alexandrovich went as far as to speculate about separatism in Bosnia and Herzegovina and clutched at an opportunity to support a vociferous statement by US Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs Hoyt Brian Yee that that Serbia “cannot sit on two chairs at the same time, especially if they are that far apart”. “It was a lucky chance that the interview [with the Ukrainian ambassador – TASS] did not last longer, or otherwise Serbia would have been charged with triggering World War II – in collaboration with Russia, naturally,” the Serbian Foreign Ministry said. Ambassador Alexandrovich had kept churning out claims that nobody in Serbia took seriously, but President Vucic had to come up with a strongly worded comment after Kiev’s envoy had said Belgrade was doing nothing to stop Serbian citizens from fighting in East Ukraine on the side of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk republics. “I’d like others to stay away from preaching morality here and especially those who deprive their ethnic minorities of the right to use native languages,” Vucic said. “To say nothing of those who […] pass laws on criminal procedures against the people taking part in other countries’ wars.” The Serbian public that was outraged by ambassador Alexandrovich’s allegations and welcomed reports on his departure with enthusiasm. Comments buzzed throughout Serbian social media such as, ’please keep him there as long as you can!” and “It would be good if he stayed put in Kiev for the sake of our mental health, which he violates…’ were rife. It appears, however, that the consultations between Minister Klimkin and Alexandrovich at the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry concentrated mostly on ways of stirring up new tensions. They raised Belgrade’s contacts with Crimea and the presence of Serb volunteers in Donbass. “Key attention during the consultations was focused on the problem of Serb mercenaries and on the importance of Serbia’s compliance with its international obligations in the sphere of the war on terror,” the ministry said in a commentary. Their also voiced concerns about contacts between Serbs and Crimean representatives. Klimkin tweeted that Ukraine would go to its “European friends and partners” for consultations on the matter.

EU Commission Head Juncker Reveals When Serbia, Montenegro Will Join EU (Sputnik, 8 November 2017)

Serbia and Montenegro are official candidates for joining the European Union since 2012 and 2010, respectively. “I do think that the two countries, those we are mentioning, will be members of the European Union before 2025,” European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said at a press conference in Brussels. Serbia and Montenegro are official candidates for joining the European Union since 2012 and 2010, respectively, while Albania, Macedonia, and Turkey are other candidates to join the bloc. The accession talks with Montenegro began in 2012, and with Serbia in 2014. Commenting on ties with Turkey, Juncker urged Ankara to return to European values in order to maintain its chances of joining the European Union. “Some of the Turkish authorities are trying to blame the European Union for having broken the accession promise. We are not doing that, but we want Turkey to re-become European,” Juncker said at a press conference. According to Juncker, he personally would like Ankara and Brussels “to have the best relations possible, but Turkey for the time being is stepping away from the European Union.” Relations between the European Union and Turkey deteriorated against the backdrop of Ankara’s harsh actions after the July 2016 failed coup attempt, with European lawmakers voting in favor of freezing EU accession talks with the country in November 2016. In his turn, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has threatened to wave “goodbye” to the European Union unless the process of Turkey’s accession to the bloc moved forward. According to the requirements for EU membership, those countries wanting to join the European Union must undergo a two-step process. Firstly, the country must prove their ability to comply with all the standards and rules of the Union. Secondly, said country must receive the consent of all the EU institutions and member states, as well as of their citizens, either through their national parliament or by referendum.

Serbia’s EU Membership Bid

Previously, Johannes Hahn, the European Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, has stated that Serbia would become member of the EU depending on the time that relevant reforms will be taken in the country. Serbia and the European Union have opened 10 of 35 chapters in EU accession talks so far, including chapters on financial control, judiciary and fundamental rights and so-called other items chapter which stipulated the normalization of relations between Serbia and Kosovo. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has repeatedly stated that he expected the negotiations on the country’s admission to the European Union to be finalized in 2019.

Montenegro: New Kid in the Bloc?

In 2008, Montenegro submitted an application for EU membership. In 2009, the country’s citizens were granted visa-free access to the European Union’s borderless Schengen zone, and in 2010 a Stabilization and Association Agreement between Monetnegro and the bloc, required for EU membership, finally entered into force. The country is currently conducting talks on the EU accession with Brussels.

Serbian, U.S. paratroopers to earn ‘wings’ during bilateral military exercise (Reuters, 8 November 2017)

BERLIN – Serbian and U.S. paratroopers will jump side-by-side during a joint exercise aimed at strengthening military ties with Serbia, the U.S. general in charge of NATO’s Allied Air Command said, a move that could trigger protests from Moscow. In the exercise, which is taking place at the invitation of the Serbian government, paratroopers from both countries will jump side-by-side from 2 C-130J transport planes built by Lockheed Martin Corp in a so-called insertion exercise. About 100 U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army personnel will participate in the event, General Tod Wolters, who also oversees U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Africa, told Reuters. “They will actually get their paratroop wings as a result of these activities. These are confidence-building activities – relationships that will last for a lifetime. And they will certainly enhance the technical expertise of the Serbs,” he said. It was not immediately clear how many Serbian forces would participate. Wolters said tensions in the Balkans remained a challenge for NATO and the U.S. military, but engagement was key. “It will continue to be a challenge, but we’ve got the right command focus. We’ve got the right resources. We’ve got the right dialogue and time will tell what unfolds,” he said. Any NATO-related activities in Serbia are a red flag for Russia, which worries about NATO expansion in the former communist east. Moscow has also sought to bolster military ties with Belgrade with the donation of six MiG-29 fighter jets. Serbia has been performing a delicate balancing act between Russia and the West, rejecting calls by U.S. officials to pick a side. The largest of the states to emerge from the collapse of Yugoslavia in the 1990s, Orthodox Christian and Slavic Serbia has natural affinity with Moscow, but it is keen to join the European Union. Although the EU is Serbia’s single largest trade partner and investor, Russia controls its oil and gas supplies.