The EP rapporteur for Serbia welcomed the initiative to launch an internal dialogue on Kosovo and added that Serbia's constructive approach is highly appreciated in Brussels, KIM radio reported McAllister’s statement to the daily newspapers Blic.

"Yes, I welcome the initiative of President Aleksandar Vučić to launch a domestic dialogue on this issue," David McAllister told daily Blic.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, stated today “there is nothing from Kosovo membership in the United Nations,” Serbian media reported.

“I am almost certain there is nothing from their membership in the UN, unless we make some sort of agreement, and that can’t happen if someone thinks Serbia should lose everything and Albanians should get everything,” Vucic stated.

He also added that Pristina representatives obtained temporary passes to enter the UN building during the UN General Assembly session.

Since the break-up of Yugoslavia no US president has visited Belgrade, and the president of Serbia expects Donald Trump to come here next year.

After Russian, Chinese and numerous European leaders, Serbia could thus soon host the US president.

"It would quite certainly be a historic visit, as he would be the first US president to come to Serbia," said Aleksandra Joksimovic from the Center for Foreign Policy.

State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs and Eurasian Integration chair Leonid Kalashnikov has called on the US president and the West to "return Kosovo to Serbia."

"Calling for respect of sovereignty sounds cynical coming from the president of a power that has destroyed the entire world order. Let's start with Kosovo. Who dismembered Yugoslavia? Americans went down that that road and opened Pandora's box," Kalashnikov told TASS.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said in New York on Wednesday that US president Donald Trump has accepted his invitation to visit Serbia

"When I invited him, I explained in detail why I think it's important that he comes to Serbia. I spoke about the attitude of all Serbian citizens toward him and the US policy, how people in Serbia would welcome him, why it's important, and that his presence would show how much Serbs want that friendship," Vucic told reporters.

By David McAllister, 20.09.2017

Serbia is well on its way towards fulfilling the EU membership criteria. Yes, more reforms are necessary, but as long as Serbia moves forward, steadily and consistently, we ought to acknowledge and support every step towards our united European future.

Ahead of the Interpol General Assembly that will start on September 26, the US is "mustering all forces" to make Pristina a new member of the organization.

The Belgrade-based daily Vecernje Novosti reported this, adding that the host of this year's assembly is China, and that in Beijing, Belgrade's arguments on this issue will be defended by a delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic.

The proposal of the Initiative set up to discover the truth about the consequences of the NATO bombing of Serbia has been supported by the president.

The Belgrade-based daily Vecernje Novosti writes that it learned this, and adds that according to the plan of the Initiative, a national laboratory should be set up to examine the consequences NATO's 1999 bombing of Serbia has had on humans and the environment.

EP rapporteur for Serbia David McAllister says negotiations on Serbia's EU accession EU require "constant movement towards better relations with Kosovo".
He told the Belgrade-based tabloid Kurir that "this process should gradually lead to the normalization of relations between the two sides, with both being able to exercise their rights and fulfill their responsibilities."

Internal dialogue on Kosovo represents “much more than Kosovo” Norwegian Ambassador to Serbia, Arne Sannes Bjørnstad said, adding that this dialogue could help many to understand past and future of Serbia and prepare the ground for the future, Tanjug news agency reported.

“This dialogue is what Serbia wants to be and everybody should take part in that debate”. Bjørnstad also added that civil society should have an important role in the dialogue by opening the debate for marginalized groups too.