Brussels, 26/04/2005 (Agence Europe) - As we announced (EUROPE 8934), Monday's “External Relations” Council gave its green light in principle to the opening of negotiations with Serbia and Montenegro on a Stability and Association Agreement (SAA). The ministers share the view of the European Commission that the country has made “substantial progress” and call on the Commission to present the Council with a draft negotiating mandate “as soon as possible”. The Council has not put together a precise timetable for the negotiations, but the conclusions adopted on Monday indicate that the objective is to start them “as soon as possible”. In its conclusions, the Council also reaffirmed its commitment to keeping the State Union of Serbia-Montenegro. The Council reiterates the European perspectives of the union of two republics, stating: “The pace at which Serbia-Montenegro (…) comes closer to the EU will depend on the speed with which the Union and the two Republics adopt and implement the necessary reforms and come into line with the Copenhagen criteria and the conditionalities of the stabilisation and association process, including full cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia (ICTY)”. The Council also adopted conclusions on Kosovo, reaffirming its “long-term European perspectives” and the importance of implementing standards defined by the UN. In conclusions on the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), the Council expressed its disappointment at the “irregularities” which were noted by international observers at the recent local elections. Those responsible for these irregularities must be pursued and punished, and measures must be taken to prevent them from ever happening again, said the Council, which urges the municipal elected representatives to commit fully to the implementation of the major decentralisation reforms. As for the tension subsisting between FYROM and Greece over the official name of the country, the Council urged both sides to “step up their efforts to find a negotiated and mutually acceptable solution swiftly” within the framework of UN Security Council resolutions.