LOCAL PRESS

 

Putin to Vucic: Russia counting on further development of relations (Tanjug)

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday to discuss all important issues and further improvements in political and economic relations between Serbia and Russia. The two leaders have concluded the sincere and true friendship of the Serbian and Russian peoples should be strengthened with a more effective cooperation in all fields, the Serbian government’s press office said in a release. Vucic thanked Putin for the political support Russia has been offering to Serbia in preserving its territorial integrity. Putin expressed hope that people who devote significant attention to the development of Russia-Serbia relations will be given a worthy place in the new Serbian government, irrespective of its composition, the RIA Novosti reported. Your party has won a landslide victory - in addition, your allies have won the required number of seats. I know that a government will be formed in the near future. I would like to express the hope that, irrespective of the composition of the future Serbian government, people who devote significant attention to the development of the relations between Russia and Serbia will occupy a worthy place in it, Putin said after meeting with Vucic in Moscow. We will continue to work with you to strengthen interstate relations and build our relations in the sphere of political cooperation, in the economy and in the international arena. We are very glad that that you have won and I congratulate you, Putin told Vucic. He said that his cabinet will do its best to develop relations with Russia. Relations with the Russian Federation mean very much to us - also, we particularly value your personal contribution to the development of the relations between our countries and strengthening of relations in all areas, Vucic said, adding that the new Serbian government will be formed by mid-June.

 

Djuric: Why is formation of ZSO postponed? (Tanjug/RTS/Beta)

Expert teams from Belgrade and Pristina started two-day talks in Brussels on Thursday evening on open issues and implementation of agreement on Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO), energy, telecommunication and other areas and the head of the Belgrade delegation Marko Djuric said that he insisted on answer to the question when would the ZSO be formed and whether Kosovo citizens with biometric passports could travel to the EU without visas, news agencies reported. “We came to ask several serious and for some troublesome questions. What is going on with the formation of the ZSO? How much longer will its formation be postponed and why is this happening? Why do we hear new negative things from Pristina regarding the agreements they have signed with us?” Djuric asked. He also stated that Serbian side would like to know what were Pristina plans regarding formation of Serbian company in the area of telecommunications, which would work on a territory of the southern province. “We also came to ask the representatives of European Union if they would allow Serbian citizens in Kosovo with valid biometric passports of Serbia to be discriminated during the visa liberalization for Kosovo”, Djuric emphasized.

Head of Pristina delegation Edita Tahiri once again conditioned the formation of the ZSO by demanding a telephone code for Kosovo and cancellation of all Serbian parallel structures in Kosovo. She said that Pristina would not take any steps towards formation of the ZSO before Serbia should unblock the telephone code for Kosovo that was agreed (+383) and Kosovo energy system’s independent activities.

 

Kozarev: Tahiri’ s clumsy excuses for non-implementing ZSO (Tanjug/Beta)

Deputy Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Dusan Kozarev has stated that Pristina’s main negotiator Edita Tahiri is trying, for the umpteenth time, to confuse the public by inventing clumsy excuses for non-implementing the agreement on the formation of the Association/Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO). “By inventing a series of unbelievable conditions for the formation of the ZSO, Tahiri is trying to conceal the fact that the deadlines for all activities, envisaged within the agreement on the formation of the ZSO, have been breached a long time ago, and the only reason for something like this is the stubborn and malicious refusal of Pristina to allow the Serbs to create minimum conditions for survival and progress in the province,” Kozarev said in a statement. The formation of the ZSO, as the most important step in the normalization process between Belgrade and Pristina, is not conditioned upon any of the other accords’ implementation, which are also being obstructed by Pristina. “We certainly cannot have any understanding for Ms. Tahiri’s constant endeavors to invent obstacles where there are not any. The insolence of Ms. Tahiri is fantastic as she conditions the formation of the ZSO with the abolishment of, as she says, ‘parallel Serbian institutions’, since they are presently the only guarantors of the survival of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija,” stresses Kozarev. Without the ZSO, there are no Serbian interests, for Belgrade to be taking part in the endless harrowing persistently arranged by Tahiri toward the Serbian negotiators and the EU representatives who are mediating in the dialogue.

 

In letter from jail, Ivanovic urges Serbs to form ZSO (Tanjug/Kontakt Plus Radio)

Serbs in Kosovo must start establishing the Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO), according to Civic Initiative SDP leader Oliver Ivanovic.Albanians’ opposition to the formation of this community, agreed on during the Belgrade-Pristina talks, will subside only when they realize that it will be formed with or without them, Ivanovic said in a letter he wrote in prison.

It is evident that Pristina will drag its feet on establishing the Community, mostly because the Kosovo authorities realize that resisting the process is one of the key topics on the opposition's agenda, he stated. “I think that there is no reason to wait for good will from Pristina, because there will never be good will. Pristina will constantly be setting conditions for establishing the ZSO,” wrote Ivanovic. More concessions will be demanded from Serbia despite the fact that concessions have already been made during the negotiations on the ZSO, reads the letter, handed to Kontakt Plus Radio by Ivanovic’s lawyer.

Miscevic: Formal decision on Chapter 23 next Wednesday (B92)

Serbia’s Chief Negotiator with the EU Tanja Miscevic expects the formal decision on the opening of Chapter 23 to be made on 1 June, so that it could be opened by the end of June. “The solution (for the opening of Chapter 23) will be presented to us next Wednesday, when the decision, the agreement, should also be adopted in a meeting of the Committee of Permanent Representatives which convenes every Wednesday,” Miscevic told TV B92. This means Serbia will be invited to present its negotiating positions and start the other part of the process, during which the country will provide European institutions with additional answers to certain questions, she added. All this put together gives us enough time to remove all political and technical hurdles for the opening of the chapters by the end of June, Miscevic said.

 

Davenport: Serbia is late with implementation of Action Plan for Chapter 23 (Danas)

Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia Michael Davenport has said that Serbia is late with the implementation of the Action Plan for Chapter 23, adding, however, that he is confident that its full implementation will be a priority for the new government. The EU wants to see tangible progress towards establishing effective rule of law in Serbia, including independency and impartiality of the judiciary and the prosecutor's office and independency of institutions and the media, Davenport told Danas. It is essential that state institutions in Serbia implement recommendations by the Protector of Citizens, as was promised by the prime minister in a recent case of demolition of houses in Savamala, and that the government deals with the investigation into this case seriously, said Davenport.

 

New Serbian Army contingent leaves for peacekeeping mission in Lebanon (Beta/Novosti)

Serbian Army members from the Fourth Brigade of land forces had a ceremonious send-off at the Vranje Knjaz Milos the Great First Infantry Regiment barracks in Vranje, ahead of leaving for a multinational peacekeeping mission in Lebanon. The Lebanese peace mission will include 130 infantry company troops, five of whom are women. A platoon consisting of 33 members of the Fourth Brigade have also left for the mission, where they are to stay until November. This is the eighth tour of Serbian army members in the Lebanese multinational peace mission, while the professional soldiers from Serbia will be attached to the Spanish contingent.

The army members prepared for the Lebanese mission in the South base, outside Bujanovac. Their send-off included land forces commander Milosav Simovic and Fourth Brigade commanding officer Zoran Lubura.

 

REGIONAL PRESS

 

Joint committee should investigate alleged participation of the B&H Security Ministry, OBA and foreign intelligence services in the organization of the opposition protests in Banja Luka (Srna)

Security expert Predrag Ceranic said that the conclusion of the B&H House of Representatives that the joint committee overseeing the operations of the Intelligence and Security Agency (OBA) B&H should investigate allegations presented on RTRS on alleged participation of the B&H Security Ministry, OBA and some foreign intelligence services in the organization of the opposition protests in Banja Luka is not good since the committee does not have the power to investigate, and warned that the real aim is to limit the freedom of the media. The president of the Serbian Committee 300, Dejan Lucic, said that the conclusion of the B&H House of Representatives, proposed by the SDS, that the joint committee overseeing the operations of the B&H OBA investigates allegations presented on RTRS on alleged participation of the B&H Ministry of Security, OBA and some foreign intelligence services in the organization of the opposition protests in Banja Luka on 14 May, was brought out of fear.

 

B&H Constitutional Court confirms Bosniaks’ right to the name of their language (Fena/ Srna)

Vice President of Republika Srpska (RS) Ramiz Salkic said in a statement for Fena that Bosniak officials for years have stressed what was yesterday confirmed by the B&H Constitutional Court, that the RS authorities cannot impose the Bosniak people the name of their language. The Constitutional Court of B&H rejected as unfounded the request by Deputy Chairman of the House of Peoples of the Parliamentary Assembly of B&H, Safet Softic, to assess constitutionality of a sentence from the Constitution of RS in the part of which it reads: “The language of the Bosniak people,” because the Court found it is in accordance with the Constitution of B&H.

 

IMO: B&H to finalize and publish the census results urgently (Fena)

Following the recent decision of the B&H Agency for Statistics (BHAS) to adopt the program to process census questionnaires, the International Monitoring Operation (IMO) for the 2013 Population and Housing Census in B&H, met with representatives of the government, including Minister of Civil Affairs Adil Osmanovic as Census Coordinator, and with the statistical institutes on 26th May 2016. Director at Eurostat and Chairman of the International Monitoring Operation for the census in B&H (IMO) Pieter Everaers said in Sarajevo that the methodology for data processing, including determining the status of the resident population, which was established by the Central Census Bureau of B&H, is in accordance with the recommendations of the IMO.

 

Serbia Will No Longer Prosecute Croatian Citizens (Vecernji List, by Vedran Pavlic, 27 May 2016)

Details emerge of an agreement between Croatia and the European Commission on unblocking Serbia’s EU negotiations.

In war crimes trials, Serbia must avoid a conflict of jurisdiction between states. Also, Serbia must fully cooperate with the ICTY and implement all of its decisions and judgments, and in the treatment of minorities Belgrade must comply with national and international obligations. These are provision on an agreement reached between Croatia and the European Union which enabled Serbia to get a green light for the opening of Chapter 23 of its accession negotiations with the EU, reports Vecernji List. Although these are very diplomatic formulations, they show that Croatia has managed in its intention to force Serbia to change some of its policies.

The first point of disagreement was Serbia's claim to the so-called regional jurisdiction, which meant the prosecution of war crimes committed in the territory of the entire former Yugoslavia. With its controversial law on war crimes, Serbia claimed jurisdiction to prosecute Croatian citizens for crimes committed on Croatian territory, although proceedings against them were led in Croatia as well. The text of the decision, according to media sources, says that the European Union emphasizes regional cooperation and good neighbourly relations in the prosecution of war crimes, including the goal of avoiding a conflict of jurisdictions, and calls for prosecution of all war crimes without discrimination. Avoiding the conflict of jurisdictions, which is highlighted by the EU, in practice means that Serbia must abandon regional jurisdiction. Another point, cooperation with the Hague Tribunal, is referred to in the text as the key issue, and includes the full recognition and enforcement of decisions and judgments of the Court. This sends a message to Serbia that the latest incident, when it refused to extradite three officials of the Serbian Radical Party, will not be tolerated. The third point – protection of Croatian minority and insisting on the implementation of the Agreement on the Protection of National Minorities which Serbia signed with Croatia – is addressed in the text with the wording which states that the EU stresses the importance of respect and full protection of minorities in accordance with the Copenhagen criteria. The European Union takes into account legal and institutional framework and demands effective implementation of Serbia's national and international obligations, says the text of the decision which will be discussed by the EU members states next week.

 

MOST:  Karamarko will no longer be a member of this government (Jutarnji list)

Bozo Petrov, MOST leader and the Deputy Prime Minister, made the final decision – Karamarko will no longer be a member of this government. At an emergency telephone meeting of the government on Friday, at which ministers will individually state their position on SDP’s proposal to dismiss First Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Karamarko, all MOST’s ministers will support the motion of no confidence against Karamarko, reports Jutarnji List. The decision was made on Monday evening, and the MOST president informed Karamarko about it on Tuesday morning. He left him a 48-hour window to tender his resignation, and given the fact that it did not happen, MOST’s MPs will vote for his dismissal. This will certainly result in the largest earthquake in the ruling coalition so far. “Unfortunately, everything that has been happening in the last three weeks, the information which has become public, it compromises members of the government. We do not need any more information about this situation. We could have revealed our position a week ago, but we wanted to give time to the other side to solve the problem. I think we all bear some responsibility. And that is what I had expected from all the stakeholders in this story,” said Petrov. “We do not need to have more details or to wait for the decision of the Commission on Conflict of Interest Prevention because the information available clearly shows that there is a political responsibility.” “If I were in any way to become a burden for the government and if I resigned, why should the government depend on me? I am just a representative of MOST. MOST could appoint someone else to be the Deputy Prime Minister,” said Petrov asked whether the government could survive without Karamarko. “I think it should survive if it is in our interest for the citizens to live better. I cannot agree with opinion that all this is just someone’s private matter. This is not an invasion of family privacy, because no one is questioning the private life of any member of his family, but their business relations.” “MOST will not support Karamarko in parliament. If he does not resign, MOST’s MPs will vote for his dismissal. I have talked with Karamarko and told him our opinion. At the telephone session on Friday, ministers from MOST will agree with the proposal for his dismissal”, said Petrov. Asked who could replace Karamarko in the government, Petrov said he did not want to comment on internal decisions of other parties. “Who will be HDZ’s Deputy Prime Minister, who will possibly lead HDZ, that is something that HDZ members would have to decide. Tomislav Karamarko can remain HDZ president if that suits their members. MOST would have no problem with that. I am just commenting about political accountability at the level of executive branch and the position of Deputy Prime Minister.”

 

Protest of DF in Montenegro: Protesting over the election of the government of electoral trust (RTCG)

Last night’s protest in Podgorica organized by the Democratic Front, against the government of electoral trust was attended by several hundred people. The DF  leaders: Andrija Mandic , Slaven Radunovic , Milutin Djukanovic , Nebojsa Medojevic , Predrag Bulatovic and Milan Knezevic arived to the protest at 20:00 and addressed the cowed at the plateau across from the Parliament. The protest ended without incidents.

 

EU Commissioner Hahn calls on Macedonia’s old-new government to work on urgent reform priorities (MIA)

Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy & Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn called Thursday on Macedonia’s old-new government, led by the VMRO-DPMNE/DUI coalition, to implement the European Commission ­recommended urgent reform priorities and provide appropriate conditions for functioning of the Special Prosecutor's Office, MIA correspondent reports from Brussels. It is very important for the European Union to have a stable neighborhood, which means grater support for the Western Balkan to join the Union, Hahn said at a briefing with correspondents from several countries of the region. Referring to the situation in Macedonia, Hahn said the country's performance was essential for the EU. The 2015 June/July agreement addresses set of issues and implementing of reforms in all notified spheres is important for Brussels, he said. “This old­new government is obliged to work on these priorities. We hope that all political parties will take part in the parliament work and discuss. This is important for us ­ it is the Przino Agreement’s result. It is also important to have a Special Prosecutor’s Office that will deal with the wire­tapping scandal,” Hahn said. He also supports a proposal the ruling VMRO­DPMNE presented to opposition SDSM for setting an interim government 100 days before elections. “The government offers a possibility to the opposition to ask for snap elections whenever it wants. I personally mediated the Przino Agreement, when a lot had been achieved, except for the elections. After such a long period of instability I still believe that the elections are sound, last cornerstone...For us, in terms of the country’s performance, it is important how it deals with the rule of law and the implementation of the urgent reform priorities. It is vital for our assessment on the country’s progress in the next months,” Hahn said. All parties should be aware that the country’s Euro­Atlantic prospect is at stake, and at the moment they bear the responsibility to deliver, Hahn said. In this respect, he unveiled his proposal for some sort of international monitoring over the preparation of the voters list. “What we have seen in Macedonia is an endless discussion on the quality of the voters list. There is ODIHR and others who offer assessment of the elections' conduct, but they present reports after the election process. In order to avoid the entire discussion before the elections, I believe it is necessary for an international institution, acceptable for all parties, to be tasked with checking up the voters list, enabling for undisputed elections to be conducted,” Hahn said. The initiative, he said is in an early stage and will be a subject of future discussion with the partners. “I believe that we do need an institution that will deal with this matter. At the moment there is no responsibility for the quality of the voters list, as for me none of the institutions in the country is capable to do so. We need something and that is what I will initiate,” Hahn said.

Commissioner Hahn underscored that the activities undertaken by the Special Public Prosecutor’s Office (SPO) in Macedonia were of high importance. He criticized the decision made by the President Gjorge Ivanov in April to pardon over 50 individuals involved in last year’s wiretapping scandal. Moreover, the EU official questioned the credibility of the Macedonian President. The SPO, he added, should be allowed to work independently by all political parties. Even though it isn’t part of the Przino Agreement, Ivanov’s pardoning decision is related to the SPO’s role, Hahn stated. “Once the Constitutional Court had upheld the legitimacy of this law, the international community exerted pressure on Ivanov telling him not to use this opportunity. However, a couple of weeks later, he had pardoned over 50 people and this move failed to contribute to his credibility,” the Commissioner told the briefing saying the pardoning of individuals in Macedonia was ‘unsustainable’ for the EU. Hahn vowed the EU would monitor the work of the Special Public Prosecutor's Office ‘how it is coping and whether it manages to work independently.’ According to him, threats are an unacceptable means for Brussels. “For the EU it is crucial the law on pardoning to be clarified since it hinders the SPO in its investigative activities.” Recently, the President Gjorge Ivanov has said he would reach the same pardoning decision if need be. Asked whether it would be possible for the Special Public Prosecutor’s Office to continue to work in such circumstances and whether the Union would take any actions, Hahn said the EU would draw conclusions unless things were not in line with its understanding of rule of law and the Przino Agreement. “The June/July agreement contains an item stipulating the establishment of the SPO to investigate crimes related to the wiretapping scandal. This means the SPO has to be enabled to work,” Hahn said noting that the pardoning decision was not only counterproductive, but it also violated the spirit of the June/July agreement. According to him, the Przino Agreement was still laying a solid foundation to find a way out of the political crisis in Macedonia. “At the moment, it is fine the way it is,” Hahn said when asked to comment the restoration of the pre-crisis government structure in the country. “I have to say I agree with ex­PM Gruevski, who now is only a party leader. He promised me people who have been pardoned will not be appointed government members, which according to him it is a move toward reducing tensions. But we have to see how all of this will be handled.”

“We also want to see how the EC’s urgent reform priorities are going to be implemented. It is a comprehensive list of all the elements and measures that need to be taken in order progress to be made on the road to Europe”, Commissioner Hahn said adding the forthcoming progress report would depend on their implementation. Asked whether the old­new government, helmed by VMRO­DPMNE and DUI, could implement the country’s reform agenda, Hahn said the EU at the moment wanted to see results. “The two party leaders, (Nikola) Gruevski and (Zoran) Zaev are in touch, they talk to each other, which is good. We only want to see clear results, namely implementation of the Przino Agreement, implementation of the urgent reform priorities and the SPO to make sure it does its job well,” the Enlargement Commissioner told the briefing.

For the EU, he added, it is unacceptable elections to be organized if the SPO is prevent from doing its job. Referring to the Macedonia-Greece name row, Commissioner Hahn said initial steps were being made by the countries to build confidence. “In the past few days it has been confirmed that the two sides are fostering solid cooperation on security matters related to the influx of migrants. The confidence­ building measures give hope for future development of any events. In any case, we are far from reaching an agreement. Skopje needs to do its homework first. Afterwards, we have to find a way to focus on the name issue that not only involves Greece, but it also involves Bulgaria. It’s too early to say that there are improvements, but some steps have been made and it is crucial the two countries to start working together in some areas at an official level,” the EU Commissioner concluded.

 

New Protest in Skopje, across Macedonia against President’s pardoning decision (Telegraf.mk)

The civil movement “Protestiram” resumed on Thursday the protests in Skopje and several cities across Macedonia, calling once again for urgent rescinding of President’s Gjorge Ivanov decision to pardon all of those under investigation over a wire­tapping scandal. Following the new developments protesters demanded inter alia for irrevocable resignation of the President and VMRO­-DPMNE/DUI government and setting up of a new cabinet with strict mandate. In Skopje, the protesters as usual kicked off their march outside the offices of the Special Public Prosecution (SPO) to express their support for the institution tasked with investigating probes arising from the wiretapping scandal. Afterwards, they wrote quotes of late journalist Nikola Mladenov in front of the government’s building: ‘How much the freedom costs?’ and ‘We wish for a society of free people, they wish for spineless people ­ so there could be no compromise!’ The protesters also set on fire photos of the incumbent, former government officials, including the current head of state. This evening the “Colorful Revolution” sprayed the parliament’s building with paint. The protests were also held in, Strumica, Kumanovo and Kriva Palanka.

 

INTERNATIONAL PRESS

 

Serbs rally against shady demolitions after masked crew 'tied up witnesses' (The Guardian, 26 May 2016)

Storm of protest against officials after buildings were knocked down in the middle of the night for Belgrade Waterfront project and onlooker later died

Thousands of people have protested in the Serbian capital against a wave of demolitions for a real estate development – including a bizarre night-time incident where masked men allegedly tied up onlookers and took their phones as buildings were knocked down for a real estate development. People took to the streets on Wednesday accusing the authorities of corruption and violence linked to plans to redevelop a popular area of Belgrade. The rally was organized by the Ne Davimo Beograd (Don’t Drown Belgrade) movement, which opposes a €2.7bn deal with an Abu Dhabi-based developer to transform part of Belgrade into an upscale housing and shopping complex. Demonstrators took aim in particular at an incident on 24 April in the arts and nightlife district of Savamala, where several buildings were demolished in the night by mysterious masked men. Wearing balaclavas and driving vehicles without number plates, the men allegedly bound onlookers and took their mobile phones while bulldozers razed the buildings, according to local media reports. One of the witnesses to the demolitions, Slobodan Tanaskovic, later died in hospital. Serbian ex-president Boris Tadic, leader of the opposition Social Democratic party, called for an urgent probe into the death of the 58-year-old. The Beta news agency said the cause of death had not been disclosed. Protesters called for the resignation of various police, government and city officials over the demolitions, which cleared part of the way for the Belgrade Waterfront redevelopment. “It is unacceptable that a month after the incident we don’t know who is responsible for violence against citizens. Someone should be held accountable,” said local journalist Vesna Milisavljevic, 45, at the rally. The rally appeared to be attended by 5,000 or more people. Demonstrators shouted “Vucic thief!” referring to the Prime Minister, Aleksandar Vucic. Cries of “This is our town!” and “Resignations!” rang out. Vucic, who unveiled the waterfront project in 2014, has branded the masked men “idiots” for their behavior but said the buildings had been scheduled for demolition. They should have been razed during the day, Vucic told reporters earlier this month, adding that he would have attended the demolition “with pleasure”. The agreement signed with developer Eagle Hills aims to turn parts of Savamala and surrounding areas into nearly two million square metres of malls, offices and apartment blocks. The centerpiece of the project is a 200-metre tall Dubai-style tower. Backers of the project say it will regenerate a rundown area, while critics allege a lack of transparency and public consultation, fearing the development will be of little benefit to most Serbian citizens.

 

Kovac: Croatia not blocking Serbia, rejects extremism (La Croix, 26 May 2016)

Croatia supports Serbia's EU membership bid, but the continuation of its accession negotiations depends on Serbia's readiness to respect the rule of law, Croatian Foreign and European Affairs Minister Miro Kovac said in an interview with the French newspaper La Croix published on Thursday. Kovac also said it was not true that some groups in Croatia, including the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party, had a negative opinion of the European Union, stressing that the Croats are "Euro-realists" and reject any extremism, both right-wing and left-wing extremism, as is written in the preamble to the Croatian constitution. When asked why Croatia was blocking Serbia's EU accession negotiations, the Croatian minister said that was a wrong impression. "That is a wrong impression. Croatia is one of the countries that supported the formal opening of negotiations between Serbia and the European Union in January 2014, as well as the start of negotiations on the first two policy chapters in December 2015. We clearly support Serbia's efforts to get closer to the European Union. That is in Croatia's interest," Kovac said. "Negotiations on two key chapters, which relate to fundamental rights and the judiciary and which are at the very heart of the European identity, can still be opened in June. Progress in that area primarily depends on Serbia's willingness to respect the principles of the rule of law," he added. Serbia is hoping to open negotiations in Chapter 23 (Judiciary and Fundamental Rights) and Chapter 24 (Justice, Freedom and Security) in June, but Croatia has not yet given its consent. Croatia demands that full cooperation with the Hague war crimes tribunal, annulment of the law that grants Serbia the authority to prosecute war crimes throughout the former Yugoslavia, and rights for the Croatian minority in Serbia be included as benchmarks for opening Chapter 23. Negotiations with the European Commission and EU member states on this matter are still going on. Kovac denied that some groups in Croatia, including the HDZ, had a negative opinion of the European Union, comparing directives from Brussels to new communism. "That again is a wrong impression. Croats are more pro-European than citizens of many of the EU founding states," Kovac said, citing the recent rejection of an association agreement between Ukraine and the EU at a referendum in the Netherlands and the rejection of the first EU constitution at a referendum in France in 2005. "A recent opinion poll has shown that 60 percent of Croats support enlargement," Kovac said, adding that in his opinion the Croats are not "Euro-enthusiasts" but "Euro-realists". "Croatia's independence is inseparable from the European idea," he said, recalling that the European Community member states recognised Croatia as an independent state in 1992. "As early as 1990 our first democratically elected president, Franjo Tudjman, speaking in the Croatian parliament, called for Europeanisation of our country," he added. He went on to say that Croatia was among the few countries in the world which in the preamble to its 1990 constitution rejected totalitarian systems and values, both fascist and communist. "We condemn both right-wing and left-wing extremism." Asked if Croatia wanted to get closer to the Visegrad Group countries (the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia) because it was ideologically close to them, Kovac said that Croatia wanted to have friendly relations with all its neighbours. "Croatia wants to have friendly relations with all its immediate neighbours: Slovenia, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro and Italy. We want to cooperate closely with countries in central and Eastern Europe and intensively with our neighbours in southeastern Europe," the Croatian minister said. In that context Kovac said that Croatia was proud of its role in the refugee crisis because it did not close its borders but provided temporary shelter to 1,600 refugees. Croatia closely cooperated with Austria and Slovenia, as well as with Serbia and Macedonia, and thus helped considerably reduce the number of refugees and migrants coming to Europe, he added. "We helped the European Union reach a common position on the migrant crisis. The Bavarian premier recently thanked us for that," Kovac said. Speaking of the Schengen passport-free area, Kovac said that all should be done to preserve it and make it more effective. "Croatia hopes to join it in 2018. We are working on it," he said. "To the average Croat or Frenchman, Europe today, what is tangible, is free movement of people and goods and the common currency. All should be done to preserve the Schengen regime and the euro," Kovac said.

 

NATO in Montenegro: Securing the rear before Barbarossa II? (RT, by Nebojsa Malic, 26 May 2016)

The strategic importance of Montenegro is inversely proportional to its size. With it, NATO will have full control of the Adriatic Sea, finish the encirclement of Serbia, and be emboldened to pursue a more aggressive stance towards Russia.

Last week, the government of Montenegro signed a protocol on joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. If ratified by the Alliance’s other 28 members – and it will be – the membership may become a formality by the end of this year. While the country has a population fewer than 700,000 and no more than 1,500 members of the military, the reason NATO wants Montenegro is not its military might, but in equal measures strategic location and symbolism.

Geographically speaking, the country is a natural fortress, and could be held against an invading force by a much smaller number of defenders, Thermopylae-style. That is precisely what the Montenegrin Army did at Mojkovac in 1916, protecting the flank of the retreating Serbian Army against a numerically superior Austro-Hungarian force. Then there is the symbolism part. Back in the 15th century, even after they successfully overran the Serbian principalities of the central Balkans and advanced on Vienna, the Ottoman Turks found that they could never fully subjugate the mountain clans of Montenegro. After trying many times and failing, they settled for exacting tribute instead. This enabled the small Orthodox Serb community to preserve their faith, culture and memories – until their statehood could be resurrected in the 1800s. The Prince-Bishops of Montenegro were a loyal ally of Imperial Russia, to the point of declaring war on Japan in 1904 in solidarity with the Tsar. Montenegro united with Serbia in 1918, and soon thereafter became part of the Kingdom of South Slavs, later known as Yugoslavia. It stayed in the union with Serbia even after Yugoslavia was dismembered by the EU and NATO in the early 1990s. It, too, was bombed by NATO airplanes in 1999, when the Alliance attacked Yugoslavia in support of the ethnic Albanian separatists in Kosovo. When NATO sought to drive a wedge between Serbia and Montenegro by sparing the latter, the following graffiti appeared in the city of Niksic: “Bomb us too, we’re not lepers.”Yet the leader of Montenegro, Milo Djukanovic, decided to switch allegiances after that war. Having come to power in 1989 as a fierce supporter of union with Serbia, he reinvented himself a decade later into the biggest anti-Serb in the former Yugoslavia, a fairly daunting task. Djukanovic aided the US-backed activists in their October 2000 coup that seized power in Belgrade, arguing that Montenegro’s suddenly-discovered problems with Serbia were due to a deficit of democracy. Within months, however, he was campaigning for independence. NATO and the EU were happy to oblige. They first negotiated an agreement between Montenegro and Serbia, abolishing the very name of Yugoslavia and proclaiming a “State Union.” Within three years, right on script, Djukanovic called a referendum on independence. A video surfaced of Djukanovic agents openly buying votes, persuading people to “break their minds” and vote yes. Tens of thousands of Montenegrins living in Serbia were disenfranchised, while buses and charter jets of ‘Bosnians’ and ‘Kosovars’ were brought in. On May 21, 2006, the separatists won by fewer than 2,000 votes, or 0.5 percent. The US-controlled government of Serbia shrugged and accepted the outcome. Djukanovic proceeded to turn Montenegro into a virulently anti-Serb society, establishing a new “Orthodox Church,” proclaiming a new language, and essentially redacting all mention of the country’s Serb identity from history books and literature. The crowning achievement of this ‘identity change’ would be membership in NATO and the EU. The regime in Belgrade, which oscillates madly between practical submission to NATO and gestures of eternal friendship towards Russia, doesn’t appear too concerned about Montenegro’s membership in the aggressive military bloc. Neither, for that matter, does Moscow. “This is their personal matter, it’s their personal choice. It’s up to them to decide on this. If they think that this will benefit their national security, then this is so,” is how Yevgeny Lukyanov, Deputy Secretary of Russian Security Council, commented on Montenegro’s NATO membership to reporters on Monday, according to TASS. Is it? So, one supposes, was the choice faced by Regent-Prince Pavle Karadjordjevic of Yugoslavia in March 1941, when Hitler and Mussolini pressured him to join the Tripartite Pact, promising safety in the Axis rear. Traumatized by the bloodbath of WW1, his government signed the pact, only to be overthrown in a coup two days later. The enraged Hitler – who needed the Balkans pacified before he could launch his invasion of the Soviet Union – ordered Yugoslavia “wiped off the map,” postponing Operation Barbarossa from mid-May to late June. The end of that particular story was commemorated on May 9 – though hardly by any NATO members, one should note.

Yugoslavia was literally decimated, and the USSR lost almost 27 million people fighting the Nazis, only for the modern map of Europe to look eerily like it did in 1942. Many of Hitler’s allies then are NATO members now, and German troops are once again in artillery range of Leningrad (now called St. Petersburg). Having secured Montenegro and expecting no resistance from “softly” occupied Serbia, NATO may be emboldened to act even more aggressively towards Russia. This is madness, of course, but there is an alarming lack of sanity in Brussels and Washington these days. That is why Montenegro matters.

The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.