Brussels, 25/07/2013 (Agence Europe) - On 24 July, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton met the prime ministers of Serbia and Kosovo, Ivica Dacic and Hashim Thaçi, to discuss the preparation of the municipal elections scheduled for 3 November. They agreed that all concrete measures should be taken to ensure a good turnout at the elections, Ashton states in a press release.
Dacic stressed that “significant progress” has been made on organising the elections, according to a press release from the Serbian government. In his view, Serbs will be allowed to vote with the personal documents that they already possess, and an “agreement has been concluded to find mechanisms, and to organise voting for displaced persons and those born in Kosovo, including those who live in Serbia”. Dacic and Thaçi agreed that a place will be reserved for a representative of the Serbian list within the central electoral commission and other electoral bodies. They also underlined the role of the OSCE.
The issue of the police was tackled, with the integration of members of the Serbian community in the Kosovo police, who will be able to work there without requiring identity documents from Kosovo. However, in Dacic's view, there are still differences of opinion on judicial issues - in particular, on magistrates' courts and prosecutors' offices.
Dacic and Thaçi also discussed the issue of energy and telecoms, on which they hope to be able to reach agreement in the coming days. The working groups continue their discussions on these issues. Dacic hoped for an agreement in “seven to ten days”. In Thaçi's opinion, Serbia and Kosovo are close to an agreement but there are still a few details to be ironed out.
The meeting also focused on the implementation of the 19 April agreement. “Work on implementation will continue in the coming weeks with the same intensity so that we maintain the good momentum achieved so far”, Ashton said.
Dacic announced another meeting in Brussels on 27 August - a date which has not been confirmed by Ashton's spokesperson. (CG/transl.fl)