Brussels, 18/12/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 18 December, the Serbian minister for European integration, Jadranka Joksimovic, said she was “somewhat disappointed” that her country has still not opened any accession negotiation chapters.
“There is no date but we will not give up. We will continue to work still harder for the negotiations”, Joksimovic stated. She reiterated that Serbia was doing “its utmost” for European integration to remain its strategic objective, “whether it be in the long- or medium-term. We don't think that 2014 has been a bad year for us in the context of integration. We will do everything for 2015 to be still better”, she added at the end of the second meeting of the EU-Serbia stabilisation and association Council.
Serbia opened its accession negotiations on 21 January 2014 (see EUROPE 11001). While certain member states are reportedly ready to open Chapters 23 (judicial apparatus and fundamental rights) and 24 (freedom, security and justice), others want Chapter 35 on issues linked to Kosovo to be opened at the same time. In Joksimovic's view, once the dialogue is resumed with Kosovo, it will be necessary “to sit around the table in order to know especially what to do on the subject of opening Chapter 35”. However, for Latvia's minister of foreign affairs, Edgars Rinkevics, setting up the agreement with Pristina is what makes this chapter. “There aren't any new conditions or demands”, he added. “What we want to see is a more active establishment of the agreement”, he said.
Questioned about aligning Serbia's foreign policy with that of the EU (see EUROPE 11219), Joksimovic reiterated that her country would not avoid any obligation. “It's not easy to take part in decisions in which we weren't involved”, she said. Serbia has not adopted EU sanctions with regard to Russia. Rinkevics hoped that Serbia's gradual alignment with the EU's foreign and security policy might happen “as quickly as possible”.
The European party reiterated the importance of continuing the reforms. (CG)