Kovac: We are pointing out to PACE representatives that Kosovo must not be rewarded for unfulfilled obligations

Vice President of the Serbian National Assembly and Chair of the Committee for European Integration, Elvira Kovac, stated that for now, there is no Kosovo’s request to obtain special guest status in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), and that Serbia is successfully delaying the inclusion of that request on the agenda, hoping it will be dropped, RTV reports.

She said that, as a member of the Serbian delegation, she is working to point out to PACE representatives that now is not the time for Kosovo to be rewarded in any way.

“PACE representatives try to tell us they are neutral, that they are objective, and of course, they are aware that what Albin Kurti is doing is not right and should not be rewarded. We are trying to explain to them that whatever status they (Pristina) are given, they will present it as a major success and as the next step toward full membership in the Council of Europe,” Kovac said.

She emphasized that the formation of the Community of Serb Municipalities, which has been pending for more than ten years, is the fundamental condition.

“We know that this has been Pristina's obligation for over a decade, if we talk about the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue and the Brussels Agreement, and nothing has been done regarding the formation of the CSM. Therefore, there should be no discussion about Council of Europe membership. I think this is a very strong argument for why this issue is not currently on the agenda,” Kovac said.

She stressed that joining the European Union remains Serbia’s strategic goal and that the country is ready to open Cluster 3, expressing hope that it will be opened by the end of the year.

Kovac said that the Serbian Government and the National Assembly, led by President Ana Brnabic, are doing everything to unblock the European integration process, noting that Serbia has not opened a single cluster in over three and a half years.

“I think a big step was taken yesterday when we tried to bring the National Convention on the EU back to the negotiating table, to resume dialogue with them. So nothing is lost. Serbia’s strategic goal remains EU membership, and major EU countries still support us and are helping us,” Kovac said.

She added that Ana Brnabic is scheduled to have meetings with high-level officials in Brussels today.

Commenting on Croatian President Zoran Milanovic’s statement that no country will join the EU in the future, except possibly Montenegro, Kovac described it as a rather harsh statement, especially when, as she said, it is more than certain that Montenegro will join the EU in a few years.

“We also saw that Albania has made rapid progress in recent months, managing to open a large number of clusters. Milanovic is just being himself. They were lucky to join the EU on time, and unfortunately, this part of the Western Balkans is lagging behind,” Kovac concluded.