Brussels, 14/06/2012 (Agence Europe) - During his visit to Brussels on Thursday 14 June, Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic said he hoped that accession talks would begin this autumn. A Commission report on the candidate countries is due to be published in mid-October. Commission President José Manuel Barroso, however, refused to talk about the agenda and reminded Nikolic of the commitments made by Belgrade with a view to accession.
In addition to tackling corruption and organised crime, media freedom and protection of minorities, normalisation of relations with Kosovo is, in Barosso's view, a precondition for accession negotiations. Nikolic stated that the commitments made by his predecessor, Boris Tadic, would be taken into consideration but he would ask for more detail. “I did say that I was supporting all the agreements which are not against the constitution and not harmful for the people in Serbia. Everything agreed can be implemented but we have to have clarification”, he said. He also stated that, during his visit, he had been assured by European leaders that “the EU will not demand from us to recognise Kosovo but to have good relations” with Pristina. Barroso said he was confident of Belgrade's desire to promote good neighbourhood relations in the region and highlighted the importance of regional cooperation. Similar comments were made by Council President Herman Van Rompuy following his meeting with Nikolic an hour earlier. Nikolic stated that it was now time to stop looking to the past, his country's future lay in the European Union. (CG/transl.rt)