Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said today in Brussels that Serbia is ready to resume dialogue with Pristina as soon as Kosovo abolishes recently introduced import tax.
“Serbia is always ready for dialogue as soon as the tax is abolished. We still advocate this position,” he said.
Vucic also added he hoped that the decision on abolishing the import tax would be made soon and that other countries would continue to insist on it.
Vucic told reporters after the meeting of the Western Balkan leaders with the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Policy and Security, Federica Mogherini, said he pledged to build a more integrated regional market at the meeting.
“Even if we enter the EU in 2025, which is not at all guaranteed, it is crucial for us all to develop our economies,” Vucic stated.
He went on to say Serbia was “in the most difficult position” and “stood alone” at the meeting because all the countries of the region, apart from Bosnia and Herzegovina, have recognized Kosovo’s independence, adding that, despite that, Serbia was working on developing the best possible relationships with them.
He considered the meeting open and useful and said that he expressed the need for working on regional relations irrelevant of the European integration process.
The Serbian president has stated that he had read the letter from President Donald Tramp in which he told him that the US was keen on solving the Kosovo issue through a compromise, but added that the compromise solution was nowhere in sight.
Vucic disagreed with Trump’s assessment that the process of solving Kosovo’s issue was in its final stage, but did say that it was important that, for the first time ever, the current American president “is directly involved and showed interest in relations between Belgrade and Pristina”.
“I do not think it’s easy and I do not think it will be easy, but we have no choice but to look for a solution”, Vucic added.
According to him, it will not be easy to include the UN in dialogue, but in the end, everything will depend on UN decisions, as always.
Vucic confirmed that he had talked with European Council President, Donald Tusk and European Diplomacy Chief, Federica Mogherini, but not with Kosovo’s President Hashim Thaci whom he saw “only at lunch”.
(Naslovi.net, Beta, 19.12.2018)
https://naslovi.net/2018-12-19/beta/vucic-dijalog-kad-se-ukinu-takse/22692114
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