LOCAL PRESS

 

Kosovo: Serbs attacked with Molotov cocktail, stones (RTS)

Two people were hurt on Tuesday when unknown perpetrators used stones to attack a group of Serbs returning from Gazimestan. Serbian state broadcaster RTS said it received confirmation that the incident took place from the Kosovo police. A memorial to the Serbian medieval state soldiers who died in the Battle of Kosovo on June 28, 1389 is located at Gazimestan, near Pristina. The van in which the injured Serbs traveled was returning from the site under police escort when it came under attack at Dudin Krs, near Kosovska Mitrovica. According to police sources, a Molotov cocktail was also thrown at the van and landed near the vehicle. This is not the first incident of the kind that happened in Kosovo during the marking of June 28 - Vidovdan (St. Vitus Day).

 

Stojanovic: Waiting for Pristina to unblock formation of community of Serb municipalities (RTS)

Kosovo Deputy Premier Branimir Stojanovic said on June 28 that the formation of a Community of Serb Municipalities was pending until Pristina unblocked the process. After a St. Vitus Day liturgy at the Gracanica Monastery, Stojanovic said that EU pressure was obviously needed, since only when it was applied did talk of the Community start again in Pristina. He said that he believed that the pressure would continue, as well as that concrete steps would ensue very soon. Asked whether the statute for the Community was being done by both sides, a team or only the EU, Stojanovic replied that he believed that there were several statutes at this time. "We have at least two statutes. One that we carry in our heads and hearts, and another being written possibly in some other place. It is likely that the statute for the Community, which will be valid will be between these two statutes. This is what the EU's pressure is needed for dialogue and what will actually be the Community's statute, to continue as soon as possible," Stojanovic said.

 

"Pristina's new liaison in Belgrade is former KLA member" (Beta)

A former member of the KLA ("Kosovo Liberation Army") has been appointed by the Kosovo Ministry of Foreign Affairs as the new liaison officer in Belgrade. Beta agency is reporting this on Tuesday citing Pristina-based Albanian language newspaper Zeri. Xhelal Shaqiri was named to this post a few weeks ago, according to the same source, with "the Serbian side making no objections." Before being sent to Belgrade, Shaqiri served as acting general director of the Kosovo Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This ministry has confirmed that a change has taken place at the helm of the liaison office in Belgrade, "but would not give other details, stressing this was about normal changes within the diplomatic service." The newspaper, meanwhile, observed that the appointment and Serbia's agreement were "curious" - as Serbia is "always arresting or issuing warrants" for the arrest of former members of the KLA.

 

President talks about Croatia's blockade, Brexit, Srebrenica (Beta)

It is impossible for Croatia to stop Serbia, which has fulfilled all the requirements on the path toward the EU, says Tomislav Nikolic. The Serbian President spoke in Krusevac, where he took part in the marking of the Vidovdan holiday, and a day after Croatia continued blocking the opening of a chapter in Serbia's EU accession talks. Beta agency reported Nikolic as adding that "fortunately" the European Union is made up of countries "that have common sense." "Whatever we do - and we have done a lot - Croatia is always using some move to show that it lived to see the day when it is able to influence the fate of Serbia. It is unacceptable that one country can stop another, that has fulfilled all the requirements, from joining the EU," he said. Speaking about Croatia's position when it comes to chapters 23 and 24, Nikolic said that "with the exception of those daily political uses," he is not worried at all about the Croatian administration "sometimes wanting to show their nationalists that it is still theirs." "Maybe I'm wrong when I say that a majority of Croatian politicians continue to listen carefully to what ultra-nationalists in Croatia think and say about a problem, and lack the courage to come forward with their own policy," Nikolic told reporters after laying a wreath at a monument in Krusevac honoring the heroes of the 1389 Battle of Kosovo. Asked to comment on Srebrenica mayor's "message" that the political leadership of Serbia was unwelcome there, Nikolic said that "a hand of reconciliation should be permanently extended, all the way to a hand of humiliation." Nikolic said that during his meeting with Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina Chairman Bakir Izetbegovic he suggested they should together visit both the places where Serbs, and those where Muslims suffered - but that Izetbegovic never accepted the suggestion. The Serbian President said that he respects all victims and that all of them need to be grieved, and that "during the war, which was hard and mindless, many Serbs and representatives of other nations behaved dishonorably." According to him, if the leadership of Bosnia and Herzegovina, "especially those elected by the Bosniak (Muslim) people" believe they should not have good relations with Serbia - "then one should not go there any longer." Asked whether it will be "easier to defend the 'both the EU and Russia' thesis" after Brexit, Nikolic said that this policy was "the only correct thesis, that has been guiding us, and will continue to guide us going forward." "Don't think I'm rejoicing in the crisis in the EU too much, because, whatever happens, we as a small country, which has in recent years greatly relied on cooperation with the EU - we will suffer much more," he said. Nikolic added that he would like the EU to survive and prosper. "If the EU appraises that we have fulfilled the requirements, we will become a member - if you set requirements for us that we do not want to fulfill, we will not become a member," the President concluded.

 

Vucic confirms new Government won’t be formed before 3 July (VIP)

Prime Minister-designate Aleksandar Vucic admitted on Tuesday that he made a mistake when he announced that the new Government would be formed before 3 July, and explained that he thought he would be able to do it somewhat faster than it is realistically possible, because he had, in the meantime, a great deal of international tasks to also perform, news agencies reported. “I was not lazy, I was not travelling to Mykonos, Maldives, the Brioni Islands. I was working, but I did not have enough time, and this is what is left for me form, Vucic told the press. By mentioning the popular summer resorts, PM-designate alluded to the places where leader of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Cedomir Jovanovic, chairman of the City Board of the Democratic Party (DS) Balsa Bozovic and DS leader Bojan Pajtic spent their vacations. Vucic said that he “thinks every day” about solutions to issues of personnel in the Government. He was unable to give precise information with regard to when he would complete writing his expose, which, according to his statement, is already 200-pages long, but is still unhappy with it. “I write with great difficulty, I review each page five to ten times. I assume it will be a very long and serious expose. If we succeed in maintaining peace and stability in the region, we will have the best years for Serbia before us, said Vucic.

 

Croatia adds new preconditions to Serbia for opening Chapters 23, 24 (Vecernje novosti)

On the eve of the Dutch presiding over the EU, Croatia doubled the list of its requests for Serbia, which was the reason why a consent to open negotiation chapters 23 and 24 with Serbia was not given on Monday, reads Vecernje novosti in its Wednesday issue. According to the sources of the daily, Croatia made an additional request, by seeking an initiation of an issue of compensation to victims of war crimes, missing persons and access to secret archives. These conditions have hitherto not officially appeared in discussions about a harmonized negotiation position. Other member states were unable to agree with this, so the meeting of the Expansion Workgroup was left with no results, Novosti’s source from the European Council said. Croatia has hitherto insisted on three preconditions for Serbia’s access: full collaboration with ICTY, abolishing laws on universal jurisdiction and larger rights for the Croatian minority in Serbia.

 

Two parliamentary groups in Serbia file Srebrenica genocide resolution (Tanjug)

LDP-SDA Sandzak and LSV-Green Party parliamentary groups have submitted a proposal of a resolution on genocide in Srebrenica. The proposal suggests that the National Assembly should adopt this resolution urgently. The proposed act, it is said, "condemns the genocide in Srebrenica and any denial of genocide, and proclaims July 11 Day of Remembrance of the Genocide in Srebrenica." The deputies from these parliamentary groups, in the explanation of their proposal, state that its goal is for the Assembly of Serbia "to take a major step towards resolving outstanding issues between Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbian and Bosniak (Muslim) peoples." "The recognition of genocide in Srebrenica is a civilized step that Serbia needs to confirm the seriousness of the intent to build dialogue, cooperation, trust and lasting peace in the region, based on the acceptance of the acts committed in the past, dealing with the past and commitment to justice, support to victims as the basis for strengthen security, stability and prosperity in the region," said the proposed act. The proposal also "expresses sympathy for all victims of the wars in the former Yugoslavia, as well as for their families and invites all neighboring countries to continue to provide justice and long-term support to survivors, including as necessary to those who have been victims of sexual violence." It further "confirms the commitment of the state to prevent genocide and other serious crimes, supporting efforts to implement investigations and prosecution of persons indicted for genocide in Srebrenica, and undertakes to use all available means and mechanisms to investigate and prosecute those responsible."

 

Putin wants Serbia to call referendum on accession to EU, NATO (Blic)

The party of the Russian President Vladimir Putin sought all “pro-Russian” parties in Serbia to intensify their request to hold a referendum in Serbia on its accession to EU and NATO, daily Blic reads in its Wednesday issue, referring to “diplomatic sources”. These kinds of orders have recently been communicated in Moscow, during the congress of the United Russia, attended by representatives of four Serbian parties: Serbian Radical Party (SRS), Democratic Party of Serbia (DS), Dveri and Serbian People’s Party (SNP). Deputy Chairman of the Russian Duma Sergei Zheleznyak uses every opportunity to tell the leaders of Serbia’s pro-Russian parties that they will enjoy support from Russia as long as they strive to put a referendum on EU and NATO on the agenda, says Blic and adds that the Russian side insists that the aforementioned referendum should be held on the same day as presidential election, mid-next year.

 

REGIONAL PRESS

 

Covic: Deadlock in passing decisions that would bring positive response to EU membership application (Hayat)

Croat member of the Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Presidency and HDZ B&H leader Dragan Covic organized at the B&H Presidency building in Sarajevo on Tuesday an informal briefing with representatives of media in order to discuss the current situation in B&H. On this occasion, Covic admitted that there is a deadlock in passing decisions that would otherwise bring a positive response to the B&H’s application for the EU membership. Covic added that he did not want to participate in outvoting of Serb member of B&H Presidency Mladen Ivanic when it comes to the issue of adaptation of the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) because that would mean an end to normal functioning. Covic assessed that the political blockade from the RS regarding the SAA adaptation brings nothing good to B&H on its European path. Covic stressed that the issue of the 2013 census of population should also be resolved in the upcoming days. Covic admitted that there was disregard of the agreement made with Ivanic to prolong the decision on the census for another six months. Covic explained that “the mistake” could be corrected through amendments of the Law on Census. He also expressed optimism regarding resolving the newly-emerged general situation in B&H because, as he stressed, B&H has no alternative to moving towards the EU.

 

People to decide on joining NATO only by referendum (Srna)

Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik said that in the era and culture of holding a referendum, the Serb people will most likely get a chance to hold a referendum to define its strategic positions, not only in terms of accession to NATO. Dodik told reporters that a referendum on NATO membership entails the obligation for the politicians in and from RS. He has stressed that the Serb people did not heal all the wounds caused by the NATO bombing, and cannot forget that the NATO positioned itself against the Serbs in Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) and Kosovo. "The people in RS will definitely opt whether to access NATO or not by a referendum," Dodik said adding that those who say that such a referendum cannot be called are wrong. He has stressed that B&H cannot join the NATO without RS’s decision, which is an issue that is tried to be resolved through the constitutional changes. "Individually, we cannot accept manipulations regarding the posting of military property and we said there were nearly no problems with sites located in RS, but the varieties of small and large scams that we have experienced in the past, need to be stopped," said Dodik . Dodik has recalled that it was announced in 2013 that the issue of military property would be resolved in the context of total military assets, which would be enough to start the NATO Membership Action Plan (MAP), or the path towards the NATO accession. He has said that NATO has further polarized in recent years into a function of something that could cause damage to RS and the Serb people or exposed them to certain problems. "NATO entering into a confrontation, primarily with Russia, puts us in a position to choose sides and I think we should not choose side, especially not against Russia, in a possible, hypothetically speaking, conflict” said Dodik. According to him, the meeting in Warsaw, which will be held in a few days, will apparently serve additional polarization of the relations between the West and the NATO - Russia.

 

Covic: It would be completely irresponsible not to hold the elections in Mostar (TV1)

Croat member of the Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Presidency and HDZ B&H leader Dragan Covic said: "When it comes to Mostar, I was sure and I still believe that it would be completely irresponsible not to hold the elections in Mostar in October. Personally, I will do everything I can for this to happen." He reminded that SDA gave a proposal to ask from the Office of High Representative (OHR) to postpone the decision of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) regarding Mostar for two years in order to hold the elections in Mostar. He deems that such postponement would also be irresponsible considering failures to reach an agreement in the past two years. According to Covic, the Central Election Commission of B&H gave its approval to political leaders to focus solely on the Law on Elections of B&H and the appointment of members of the City Council of Mostar in order to have a functional administration until the next local elections in 2018. He stressed that talks about division or reorganization of Mostar are completely separate from talks on the local elections in Mostar. He claims that talks about reorganization of Mostar should be left aside and they should be a part of a different package. He underlined that there can be no deceptions or outvoting and Mostar must be organized in line with an agreement of Mostar citizens. Covic pointed out that political leaders have several days to agree on the number of electoral districts in Mostar and the model for implementation of the BiH CC's decision. He explained that current quotas for the appointment of members of the City Council of Mostar will remain the same for now, meaning that there will be 15 Bosniak members, 15 Croat members and no less than four Serb members of the City Council and there should be no problems to appoint members of the City Council. Covic stressed that the elections cannot be held without an agreement of everyone in Mostar. He reiterated that it would be irresponsible not to hold the elections in Mostar because the situation will remain unchanged and this would not be in the best interest of anyone, including Bosniaks. He said that it is pointless to discuss about majorization because Bosniaks in Mostar are well protected and no decision can be made without their representatives. Covic added that reorganization of Mostar should be left aside because this issue can only be resolved through new Statute of Mostar or a law at certain level of the authorities while respecting constitutional definition of local administration and self-governance.

 

Members of the B&H Presidency to pay official visit to Germany and meet with Angela Merkel (TV1)

Members of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) will pay official visit to Germany and meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday. The Cabinet of German Chancellor confirmed for TV1 that Merkel and members of the Presidency of B&H will discuss how to accelerate the European integration in B&H. Chairman of the Presidency of B&H Bakir Izetbegovic said that Merkel will receive both good and bad news from B&H but he is convinced that Germany will welcome good results achieved by B&H. Izetbegovic stated that more than 50 percent of the Reform Agenda has been implemented at the state level and more than one-third has been implemented at entity level, including the adoption of the Labor Law. Izetbegovic deems that this resulted in 27 percent increase of tourists visiting B&H and four percent increase of gross domestic product. Croat member of the Presidency of B&H Dragan Covic expressed expectations that members of the Presidency and German officials will discuss B&H's path to join the EU and NATO. Covic stressed that all decisions must be made in B&H and no one else can solve B&H's problems. "We must understand that we decide about our fate. I am sure that we have definite friend in the Chancellor (Merkel) but it is exclusively up to us to make progress," Covic stated. Covic deems that the international community will not exert pressure on political leadership of B&H to resolve certain issues. The Cabinet of German Chancellor told TV1 that Merkel and members of the Presidency of B&H will hold a working lunch on Thursday in order to strengthen bilateral relations and to discuss economic cooperation and B&H's path to join the EU, as well as upcoming Western Balkans Conference in Paris (Note: The conference will take place on July 4).

 

Plenkovic says HDZ must prepare for parliamentary polls in time (Hina)

Member of the European Parliament Andrej Plenkovic of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), the only party member who has announced that he will run for party president so far, said on Tuesday he applauded the decisions the party Presidency made yesterday regarding preparations for an early parliamentary election. Speaking to Croatian reporters in Brussels, Plenkovic said it was very important that the HDZ prepared for the parliamentary polls in time as well as for the election of its new president before that. Asked if it would be democratic if he were the only candidate for HDZ President, Plenkovic said he was for democratization but that he could not force anyone to participate in intra-party elections. Plenkovic said he was ready for public duels with political opponents during the parliamentary election campaign. He said the HDZ's campaign would be based on key issues for Croatian citizens - the economy, social issues, and better utilization of European Union membership. He said the HDZ worked on a "very detailed programme" with the Bavarian IFO institute before last year's parliamentary election "and I think that now it's the time to update that programme and see, in cooperation with our partners in the European People's Party, what the best solutions for Croatia in 2016 are."

 

Brexit is message that EU needs change, Croatian PM says (Hina)

The message Britons have sent with their referendum to exit the European Union is that Europe needs change, Croatia's caretaker Prime Minister Tihomir Oreskovic said in Brussels on Tuesday. "The main message the British have sent is that Europe needs to change, that something didn't work and now we need to see which changes we need," he told reporters. "I think the EU will survive and we should again affirm the goals and the way we will move on together," he said, arriving for a summit of EU leaders which will focus on Brexit. Oreskovic said he did not expect the British decision to have negative repercussions for Croatia's borrowing. "Interest rates won't start rising. The money could remain quite cheap." He said he did not expect negative repercussions for British tourist arrivals to the Croatian coast this summer. "Those who planned to come will come."

 

New party representing Serb minority holds inaugural session (Hina)

A new party of the Serb minority in Croatia - the Democratic Alliance of Serbs (DSS) - on Monday held its inaugural session at which the party leadership announced the DSS will be an alternative to the Independent Democratic Serb Party (SDSS) at the coming parliamentary election in Constituency no. 12 in which representatives of ethnic minorities were being elected. Some of the objectives the new party listed in its Programme Declaration are preserving the national identity of the Serb community in Croatia, encouraging the economic development and the work of Serb organizations, insisting on compensation for retirements from the 1991-1997 period and adopting a new action plan for the implementation of the Constitutional Law on the Rights of Ethnic Minorities. The elected leadership are mostly former prominent members of the SDSS. Jovica Radmanovic was elected President, Srdjan Milakovic is Deputy Chief and Nebojsa Manojlovic is Secretary General. "The rights of Serbs in Croatia are not realized, we don't have a strategy for development or survival. Political representatives of Serbs in the past period made unforgivable mistakes by doing nothing but saving their positions," Radmanovic said.

 

MIA removed the table with Kosovo’s sigil and flag of Albania from Montenegro's territory (CDM)

Flag of Albania and tables with annotations Kosovo Republic and Welcome were removed by Montenegrin Ministry of Internal Affairs. The tables were set by representatives of Samoopredeljenje, to show where “the real border” is. The tables and the flag were set yesterday before noon. They were set on Montenegro’s territory, between border crossing Kula and border crossing Savine vode on Kosovo’s side, it was said in MIA. "In order to asses facts and keep the territorial integrity intact, police officers took measure in cooperation with state prosecutor, including removing of said tables and the flag”, MIA stated. Later on the same day, around 8pm, border police of Rožaje found individuals on sight, who claimed they were there to record a TV report on demarcation of the border. "Police officers warned the individuals that they were on Montenegro’s territory, and that for such activities they must have a permit from Montenegro’s instances. After that, they left our territory”, they said in MIA. The question is whether the activities of this case hurt Montenegrin territorial integrity. "Ministry of Foreign Affairs and EU integration was notified. Their jurisdiction is solving matters of border incidents via diplomatic means”, they said in MIA. The agreement on state border between Montenegro and Kosovo was signed on August 26th 2015 in Vienna, after three years of negotiations. In accordance with Article 12 of that agreement, Montenegro and Kosovo have an obligation to ratify the Agreement. During Montenegro’s Parliament session of December 28th of last year, the Law of ratification of the Agreement was passed, with an expectation that Kosovo’s Parliament would do the same. Independent international expert committee with members from USA, Great Britain and Germany approved of the Agreement and border process. Samopredeljenje’s PR Fisnik Isamilji wrote on Facebook that yesterday’s action is a way for citizens to show their disagreement with giving away Kosovo’s land to Montenegro based on the Agreement that has been a matter of discussion between the opposition and the leadership for months, Srbija danas reports. "By raising Albania’s flag, we showed where is the border between Kosovo and Montenegro”, Ismailji wrote under the picture. "It is a point 8 kilometers away from Kosovo’s police and 2 kilometers away from Montenegro’s police. We will continue to object to this territorial divide”, Ismailji wrote. Movement Samoopredelenje, along with Alliance for Kosovo’s Future and Kosovo Initiative, has been opposed to the Agreement on state borders between Montenegro and Kosovo.

 

White House has started a process of ratifying Montenegro’s Protocol for NATO (CDM)

White House has started a process of ratifying Montenegro’s Protocol for NATO, and sent an initiative to the Senate. "I hereby announce my agreement with the ratification of Accession Protocol of Montenegro to NATO. This Protocol has been signed in Brussels on May 19th 2016 with support of USA and other members of the Alliance”, President Barack Obama’s statement for the Senate reads. He said that full ratification from USA and its allies will enable Montenegro to become a member of NATO. "Article 10 on NATO contract is part of the Alliance’s foundation. Montenegro’s accession to NATO will demonstrate to everyone that the Alliance’s doors are open to those who undertake necessary reforms and who contribute to NATO’s security", the statement of the White House reads. America’s President has asked the Senate to continue working with him in order to improve Europe by giving counsel and agreement for this Protocol. "My administration is ready to help in this process”, Obama said. Protocol has been ratified by Iceland, Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary and Albania so far. After all the members have ratified the Protocol, Montenegro needs to ratify it in its Parliament, which will finalize the process. The process should be done by middle of 2017. At the upcoming NATO Summit in Warsaw, Montenegro will have a position of an observer. Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic said that the beginning of ratification process in USA is a strong indicator of Washington’s support to Montenegro’s membership in NATO. "This is great news for Montenegro. I consider the fact that the largest state member has started the process to be very significant”, Djukanovic said. He believes that the procedure in Senate will be done as soon as possible. This is also a support for other allies to finish the ratification swiftly. Djukanovic said that it is important that Washington’s support comes just before NATO Summit in Warsaw, the first for Montenegro.

 

Macedonia: No progress marked in Work Group negotiations on Media, Electoral Roll (Telegraf.mk)

There has been no progress in the talks of the work groups with the EU and US ambassadors. Party sources reveal that the SDSM party is the one holding back negotiations. SDSM is putting forth suggestions that astonish the rest of the participants. The Electoral Roll and the media issue are two topics which are slowing down negotiations. SDSM insists for media houses which are not up to their standards to be sanctioned, while VMRO-DPMNE is firmly against this. The ruling party's stance is that it will not allow any media or journalist to be punished for voicing a stance or information. Apparently, SDSM no longer insists on passing of a new media law, but instead it speaks of reforms after the ambassadors pointed out that media activity during election period is clearly indicated in the Electoral Code, for which SDSM voted in Parliament. In regards to the Electoral Roll, it will obviously be reviewed again, even though it is clear that it has been checked and purged already. This will be done so as to appease SDSM. Despite the fact that SDSM wants the Electoral Roll to be checked again, it does not point out any concrete facts or any voters that that are suspicious. Before the cancellation of elections, through a majority vote, the State Election Commission confirmed that the Electoral Roll is revised, but this did not please SDSM. Now, it wants a checkup of about 70,000 voters that have valid driver's licenses, but are not registered in most of the databases. SDSM also has an issue with around 30,000 voters which were not present in their homes during the field checkup, even though the checkup was not obligatory.

 

US, EU officials Nuland and Haindl to arrange Election date with political leaders in July (Telegraf.mk)

Next month, top US and EU officials will come to Macedonia and attempt to make arrangements for holding elections. In the first week of July, the US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, Victoria Nuland, will arrive in Skopje. She will hold meeting with the political leaders. The meeting will be aimed at finally settling the election date and fulfillment of the conditions. Nuland might urge a meeting of the 4 political leaders, and the meeting will showcase a dedication to finding a solution to the crisis. Nuland is a frequent guest in Macedonia, she was first here a US ambassador to NATO and then as a deputy to US Secretary of State John Kerry. The last time she was here was in July of last year, just before the signing of the Przino Agreement. Party sources say that Nuland spoke over the phone with the leaders and with Commissioner Hahn during the talks in the EU Residence and that she had total insight and control over the final version of the agreement. It is expected for Nuland to express her total support of the Special Public Prosecutor's Office and to reiterate that the US fully supports Macedonia in its efforts for overcoming the crisis.  After Nuland, German MP Johannes Haindl is expected to visit Macedonia. During his last visit, he pointed out that the crisis can be resolved through the Przino Agreement, that the parties should agree on an election date and that they should do everything in their power so fair and democratic elections are realized.

 

VMRO-DPMNE leader to hold talks with top EU Officials in Brussels (MIA)

A delegation of the ruling party VMRO­DPMNE, led by leader Nikola Gruevski, kicked off Tuesday a two-day working visit to Brussels for talks with a number of high officials of the European People’s Party (EPP) and other European politicians. Gruevski, who is accompanied by ministers Nikola Poposki and Nikola Todorov and MPs Aleksandar Nikoloski and Vladimir Gjorcev, held meetings at the European Parliament with MEPs Marijana Metir, Milan Zver and Eduard Kukan as well as with Germany’s Federal Minister of Food and Agriculture Christian Schmidt, MIA’s correspondent reports from Brussels. According to Gruevski, the two­day visit to Brussels is party related and in connection to Macedonia’s Euro­Atlantic integration bid all the while being aimed at repairing the damage done by the political crisis in the country, which is ‘caused by the opposition party SDSM.’ “I have had excellent meetings with EU representatives today in Brussels. The talks I plan on having here with a lot of officials are going to be focused on Macedonia’s Euro-Atlantic integration bid and on ways to repair the damage of the political crisis in the country considering its EU integration process. We have come here to meet with friends of Macedonia and friends of VMRO­DPMNE in order to share information, views and positions as regards the Euro-Atlantic integration of Macedonia,” Gruevski told MIA. On Wednesday, the VMRO­DPMNE delegation resumes its visit to the Belgian capital where it is scheduled to hold meetings with EU top officials and diplomats.

 

INTERNATIONAL PRESS

 

Delays in forming Govt leave Serbia perplexed (BIRN)

Serbian Prime Minister-designate Aleksandar Vucic has again delayed announcing a new cabinet, prompting reports that he is unable reconcile the different interest groups. No Government has yet been formed in Serbia even though the Prime Minister-designate has announced its arrival no less than three times so far. Aleksandar Vucic's Serbian Progressive Party and its coalition partners won 131 of the 250 seats in the parliament in general elections held in April. The last legal date for forming the Government is in September. However, the public is still widely confused about why the date has been prolonged repeatedly, even though the SNS list has a majority of seats. Analysts blame the delays on tough talks within possible broader coalition partners in parliament but also on conflicts over foreign policy. “At this moment, the only reason for not forming the Government is that not everything has been negotiated between the possible coalition partners," the director of the NGO Cesid, Bojan Klacar, told BIRN on Tuesday. He said that talks with representatives of the IMF and the visit of the Chinese President, China Xi Jinping, had also slowed the formation of the Government. Vucic first announced that he would form a new Government before the visit of the President of China on June 17, after which he promised that the new cabinet would be formed by July 3. This Monday, Vucic told a press conference that when he forms the Government, "the public will know. “When I have a Government, you will find out. This means the composition of the Government will be known to the public three days before its formation because I then have to deliver its proposals to parliament,” Vucic said before leaving for Belarus and Italy. The Prime Minister-designate has signed numerous agreements already under his technical mandate, which has raised questions about the value of those agreements. “The Prime Minister signed documents with Croatian President Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic on improving relationships between the two countries. Only a couple of days after the signing, Croatia blocked Serbia from opening Chapter 23 in its negotiations with the EU,” Klacar observed. He added that such an agreement would have had much more weight had it been signed by a Prime Minister with a full mandate. Independent MP Djordje Vukadinovic told BIRN that there are several reasons for not forming the Government yet.

“The Prime Minister is playing with his potential coalition partner, the Socialist Party of Serbia, in order to lower their influence in any future Government," Vukadinovic claimed. He said that also foreign affairs had also impacted on who will sit in the new cabinet. “The Prime Minister-designate probably has to deliver what he has promised to both the US and Russia - and now it is hard to satisfy both parties," Vukadinovic said. He said the SNS also suffered from a lack of top-quality officials. “Although the SNS has won a majority of seats in parliament, it looks as if a lot of people with integrity are not keen to enter the new Government," Vukadinovic said. He also noted that Serbia had seen two early parliamentary elections in the recent past and that the delay in forming the Government could be Vucic's tactic to keep the country in a permanent state of suspense over the Government's formation. Political Science Professor Zoran Stojiljkovic said Vucic has a problem in reconciling the interests of different groups that he wants to lure into the Government. “There is also a problem with conflicting groups among his partners, and that is all time-consuming," Stojiljkovic said, noting as an example three different and conflicting Bosniak parties, which all look as if they may join the Government.

 

Political feuds leave Bosnia without UN Candidate (BIRN)

Ongoing disputes with in the Bosnian Presidency have made an agreement on a Bosnian candidate for the position of UN Secretary General impossible. Bosnia will probably be the only former Yugoslav country without its own candidate for the position of UN Secretary General whose election should take place in September 2016, as a result of the feuds inside the Bosnian Presidency. “Given the current situation, the Presidency will not propose any candidate for this position," Marija Milic, spokesperson of the Serbian member of the Presidency, Mladen Ivanic, told BIRN on Tuesday. In recent days, Bosnian media have indicated that the Presidency might nominate former Bosnian Foreign Minister Zlatko Lagumdzija for the role. However, the Croatian member of the Bosnian Presidency, Dragan Covic, on Tuesday said he and his two partners could not agree on a joint nomination. “We cannot agree on matters of vital importance (for the country), let alone on the candidacy of Lagumdzija for the UN," Covic said on Tuesday. He was referring, among others, to disagreements over the publication of the 2013 census results and over the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the EU. After having renounced having its own candidate, Bosnia's delegation to the UN might support one of the candidates from Bosnia's neighbors. They include Vesna Pusic, a former Croatian Foreign Minister, Vuk Jeremic, a former chair of the UN Assembly, from Serbia, Montenegrin Foreign Minister Igor Luksic, former Macedonian Foreign Minister Srgjan Kerim and the former President of Slovenia, Danilo Turk. However, due to the bitter divisions inside Bosnian politics, it may be difficult for Bosnia to agree to support of any of these candidates, either. The Bosnian Foreign Ministry, the Presidency and the permanent mission to the UN all declined to comment on the issue. Esref Kenan Rasidagic, an expert on international relations from the University of Sarajevo, said the most rational choice would be to support Croatia's Vesna Pusic or the Slovak Foreign Minister, and former High Representative to Bosnia, Miroslav Lajcak. “Supporting Pusic would be important in improving our relations with Croatia, while giving our preference for Lajcak would be important if he enjoys the support of countries from the European Union," Rasidagic told BIRN. However, he said he does not expect “Bosnian foreign policy to be that rational. “Most likely, if Bosnian parties agree on supporting a single candidate, this will only be the result of some internal political games and political bargaining between our different parties”, he concluded.