Brussels, 05/03/2013 (Agence Europe) - On 4 March, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton announced “good progress” at the sixth meeting between the prime ministers of Serbia and Kosovo, Ivica Dacic and Hashim Thaçi. During this meeting they discussed the areas of responsibility of the community of Serbian municipalities in Northern Kosovo. In a press release, Dacic said that “apart from an agreement in principle that a community of nine Serbian municipalities in Kosovo should be established, no significant progress has been made”. In Dacic's view, the Serbian side is asking too many powers for these communities, which the Kosovan side is not ready to accept. “Serbia wants this community to have legislative and executive powers, which Pristina does not want”, he added. According to a European source quoted by Balkan Insight, Dacic has rejected the idea that the Serbian-majority municipalities in the north could be managed from Pristina. The EU believes that these municipalities cannot have complete autonomy if they do not have control, according to this source.
And while Thaçi announced a verbal agreement on the dismantling of Serbian security structures, Dacic denied this information saying that no such structures exist in Kosovo.
Stating that the next meeting will take place on 20 March, Ashton said that “there will be some work done” by then. “The dialogue is in its crucial phase and we are trying to make progress. There is not a lot of time and we know that the prime ministers know this”, said Maja Kocijancic, Ashton's spokesperson. The European Commission will present two separate reports in April on the opening of accession negotiations with Serbia and a stabilisation and association agreement with Kosovo. Dacic hopes that a solution can be found before these reports are published. He underlined that although there is not yet an agreement, there is a possibility of reaching a compromise in the weeks to come. (CG/transl.fl)