BELGRADE -- Marko Djuric has rejected as false the claims that the government is considering "accepting the loss of Trepca in exchange for compensation."

The Belgrade-based daily Danas wrote, quoting anonymous sources and running the piece under the headline, "Serbia expects compensation for Trepca," that the dispute over the mining complex "will most likely be solved through compensation - money, or some other way."

Serbia is not setting any conditions, "on the contrary, it shows with each step how much it cares and is working on regional cooperation,"says Zorana Mihajlovic.

The deputy prime minister responded this way "on the criticism of the government, received from European parliament rapporteur David McAllister who said that Serbia should not condition the dialogue with Kosovo's abandonment of the nationalization of the Trepca mine," the daily Danas writes.

Mihajlovic was also quoted as saying by the Belgrade-based paper that "Serbia, unlike Kosovo" respects all agreements.

PRISTINA, BELGRADE -- The assembly of Kosovo will not discuss a law concerning the Trepca mining complex on Monday, it has been announced in Pristina.

GRACANICA -- Citizen's Initiative Srpska candidate Vladeta Kostic has been elected mayor in early elections in the Serb-majority town of Gracanica in central Kosovo.

According to preliminary results, Kostic got support from 64.9 percent of the electorate, or 4,614 votes, Chairperson of Kosovo's Central Election Commission (CEC) Valdete Daka announced on Sunday evening.

The government "will not accept" a unilateral decision of Pristina to take over the ownership of the Mining, Metallurgical and Chemical Combine Trepca.

The reason is the fact the Republic of Serbia Development Fund owns a majority stake in the mines, Director of the Serbian Government's Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric said on Sunday.

The government warned over the weekend that such a move "will jeopardize the negotiating process between Belgrade and Pristina."

Aleksandar Vucic says a unilateral decision of the Kosovo government to take over Trepca "would deal a heavy blow to the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue."

According to Pristina-based daily Koha Ditore, the government of Kosovo adopted the bill modifying the law on public enterprises, paving the way for the Kosovo government to take over the ownership of the Mining, Metallurgical and Chemical Combine Trepca.

The presidency of the assembly of Kosovo decided - contrary to the rules of procedure - to debate the bill under urgent procedure at the session scheduled for January 19.

PASJANE, STRPCE -- Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic has called on Serbs in Kosovo not to sell their property and told them the state "will be with them and help them."

Vucic today visited Pasjane where he opened a maternity ward. This is the first visit of a Serbian prime minister to the Kosovo-Pomoravlje District since 1999.

Kosovo Deputy PM Hashim Thaci's lecture, scheduled for Thursday in Montenegro's capital Podgorica, has been canceled for security reasons.

Thaci was to speak about "NATO integrations."

The daily Dnevne Novine quoted unnamed sources who said it was assessed that the lecture would have been "a good opportunity for some citizens to express their dissatisfaction with Thaci's visit, so the idea has been abandoned."

BELGRADE -- Retired Czech Lt. Col. Marek Obrtel, who recently returned the military medals he received from NATO, says that "genocide against Serbs" took place in Kosovo.

Serbian PM Aleksandar Vucic signed a book of condolences at the French embassy on Friday and paid homage to the victims of a terrorist attack in Paris.

12 people died during the January 7 attack at the office of the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

Vucic wrote today that "Serbia and France will fight against the evils of terrorism together, just as they have done on a number of occasions in the past."

At the same time, Vucic "condemned in the harshest terms the terrorist shots at free, peaceful citizens."