DAILY SURVEY - Nr. 51 / 388 - Belgrade - Prepared by: Z. Bucin

- SERBIA

TADIC, NAZARBAYEV:UNLIMITED SPACE FOR SERBIA-KAZAKHSTAN COOPERATION

ASTANA, Oct 7 (Tanjug) - Presidents of Serbia and Kazakhstan Boris Tadic and Nursultan Nazarbayev, respectively, have evaluated that the two countries might promote their economic cooperation considerably in the next several years on the basis of traditional friendship and the bilateral agreements signed today. Tadic told a news conference in Astana that he is impressed with Kazakhstan’s economic achievements in the past 20 years, evaluating that Serbia might become the country’s strategic partner. I am confident that Kazakhstan will get transformed into a country of major economic prosperity, turning into an exceptional economic factor, said Tadic after his meeting with President Nazarbayev, adding that Serbia is ready to take part in Kazakhstan’s development, together with the country’s companies, and to accept investments from Kazakhstan. According to Tadic’s belief, the fact that Serbia and Kazakhstan do not share a single outstanding issue in their bilateral relations and that the government in Astana consistently supports Belgrade’s policy on the issue of Kosovo and Metohija will certainly have an impact on the economic cooperation between the two countries. Recalling that the two countries are also linked with similarly conceived long-term plans for economic development, President Tadic singled out construction services, agriculture, machine building and energy supply as potentially fruitful areas of economic cooperation. President Nazarbayev concluded that the present volume of trade worth USD 20 million is practically nothing, and that there are almost unlimited possibilities to expand the economic cooperation. We believe that we may start from building pharmaceutical factories in Kazakhstan, since we import medicines worth between USD 700 million and USD 800 million every year, said Nazarbayev. It is likely that the cooperation in the area of agriculture will also be intensified in the near future and that processing of Kazakhstan’s oil in Serbia’s refineries is possible, said Nazarbayev, underscoring that Kazakhstan will protect operations of Serbia’s companies. The two statesmen signed in Astana today four important interstate agreements: a Protocol on Cooperation between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Agreement on Abolition of the Visa Regime, Free Trade Agreement and Investment Protection Agreement. President of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce Milos Bugarin and his Kazakhstan counterpart today signed an Agreement on Cooperation between the Chambers of Commerce. Serbia’s delegation visiting Kazakhstan also includes Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic and Minister of Trade and Services Slobodan Milosavljevic.

MAAS: BERLIN BACKS SERBIA’S EU PATH

BELGRADE, Oct 6 (Tanjug) - German Ambassador to Serbia Wolfram Maas stated in Belgrade on Wednesday that Berlin backs Serbia on its path to the EU. Maas stated at a reception on the occasion of 20 years of reunification of Germany that the reunification was a great day for Germany, adding that the transition process is still underway in eastern part of the country. The reception was attended by Serbian Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic, Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leader Cedomir Jovanovic and President of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) Tomislav Nikolic, representatives of the diplomatic corps and many others. East and West Germany reunited on October 3, 1990.

MAAS: SOLUTION TO PRACTICAL ISSUES IN KOSOVO THROUGH DIALOGUE

BELGRADE, Oct 7 (Tanjug) - German Ambassador to Serbia Wolfram Maas said in Belgrade on Wednesday that the model of two Germanies may be applied to Serbia and Kosovo and Metohija when it comes to practical issues, but that the essential difference between the two situations is that the same people lived in West and East Germany. In West Germany, we believed that the most important task of the government is to make people’s life easier on both sides of the border, which could be applied to the situation between Serbia and Kosovo. Ordinary people are faced with problems that are the consequence of the fact that certain issues are unsolved, Maas said in a statement with the Belgrade-based TV B92. On the other side, there are stands, and our experience shows it, that there is nothing that can not be solved, said Maas. If you sit down to talk and you have good will, a solution can be found for everything, said Maas. On the occasion of the celebration of Unification Day, Ambassador Maas also said that Germany urges for opening of a discussion on Serbia’s candidacy for the European Union, underscoring that it is good that the new session of the Dutch Parliament had received more information on Serbia from ICTY Chief Prosecutor Serge Brammertz and EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule, Maas expressed his optimism that some clarifications that Brammertz and Fule may offer will contribute to the opening of the process that would lead to Serbia’s progress in its movement closer to the Union after the next meeting of the EU foreign ministers.

MEETING IN SOCHI WRAPS UP

BELGRADE, Oct. 6 (Beta) - The Serbian deputy prime minister and interior minister, Ivica Dacic, at a conference in Sochi met with international representatives in charge of issues of national security and discussed future cooperation in the fight against crime, the Serbian Interior Ministry said in a news release on Oct. 6. Participating in the first international gathering of officials in charge of national security issues were representatives of 43 countries, as well as the U.N. assistant secretary general and director of the U.N. crime and narcotics agency. During the conference, Dacic had a number of bilateral meetings with colleagues from Russia, the U.S., China, South African Republic, Uruguay and other countries, the news release added. Topics discussed at the conference included the prevention and mitigation of consequences of natural disasters, cooperation in the fight against crime and international information safety. The conference wrapped up on Oct. 6. The participants also visited the facilities under construction for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

WARLICK AND SUTANOVAC VISIT PRANJANI

PRANJANI, Oct 6 (Tanjug) - Serbian Defense Minister Dragan Sutanovac and U.S. Ambassador to Serbia Mary Warlick visited Wednesday elementary school Ivo Andric in Pranjani, a town in Gornji Milanovac municipality, for whose reconstruction the U.S. Embassy donated USD 700,000. After visiting the school, Sutanovac and Warlick recalled that in 1944 the Pranjani residents saved the lives of 520 allied airmen who were part of WWII Operation Halyard. We are here today not only to remember the brave acts of Pranjani people, but also to build a new and firmer friendship on the foundations of the old one, Warlick said. She added that this includes both the future of the town of Pranjani, and the future of prosperous European Serbia. The visit is aimed at continuing the project Humanitarian Assistance, which consists of two parts. The first encompasses the building of a library that should bridge the two existing school buildings, while finishing a gym center, which the municipality started building several years ago, is part of the second phase. The Humanitarian Assistance project was launched in 2009, within the cooperation between the Ohio National Guard and the Serbian Armed Forces, who started working together on renovating schools and kindergartens in Lapovo, Prokuplje and the village of Trubarevac near Sokobanja, eastern Serbia.

- SERBIA - EU

BRAMMERTZ: CONDITIONING, PRESSURE KEY FOR ARRESTS

THE HAGUE, Oct. 6 (Beta) - Speaking before the Dutch parliament on Oct. 6, Hague Tribunal Chief Prosecutor Serge Brammertz reiterated that "conditioning and pressure" remain key for the arrest of fugitive war crimes indictees, especially Ratko Mladic. In his speech before the parliament’s European Affairs Committee in The Hague, Brammertz said that Mladic and the other fugitive, Goran Hadzic, are "within reach" of the Serbian authorities. Brammertz once again said that Serbia has the political will to arrest Mladic, but there are still obstacles at the operative level and the fugitives "have support networks." To a deputy’s question on whether cooperation was sufficient for Serbia’s further association with the EU, Brammertz said that he was not "making political decisions, but stating conclusions on the basis of which the government’s may make decisions." The arrest of the fugitives remains "the highest priority" of the Hague prosecution, Brammertz stressed.

FUELE WANTS SERBIAN APPLICATION SENT TO EUROPEAN COMMISSION

BELGRADE, Oct 6 (Tanjug) - EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fuele told the Dutch parliament Wednesday that the Serbian application for EU candidate status should be sent to the European Commission, pointing out that Serbia’s cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) can still remain a precondition of EU integration. We have an opportunity to support Serbia, which wants to change, and accepting these changes is just as important as continuing to pose conditions, Fuele noted addressing the Dutch parliament. Our goals are clear - the Commission is committed to demanding full cooperation with the ICTY as part of Serbia’s European integration. But right now we need to combine our requirements with a sense of politics, added the commissioner. Fuele believes that Serbia is being truthful in the cooperation with the Hague Tribunal and is doing its best to fulfill its obligations. Sending the application to the European Commission would encourage Serbia to deal with difficult issues and make its people realize that EU membership is a realistic possibility, he said. It would give the Serbian authorities a chance to turn to issues like Kosovo and the ICTY, and also to painful internal reforms, Fuele pointed out. Fuele believes the move would further strengthen the EU’s influence on Serbia. For the past several years, Serbia has had pro-European leaders and has boosted its EU accession capacities in face of the crisis, he pointed out. Fuele also noted that Serbia has made great progress in combating organized crime, pointing to improved political will and increased capacities in this area. Serbia is also active in the reconciliation process and has shown readiness to face its own past, he said. The commissioner also noted that the resolution on the International Court of Justice advisory opinion on Kosovo, jointly drafted by 28 European countries, opens the door to dialogue in the European spirit and growing trust.

NETHERLANDS WILL ACT ACCORDING TO BRAMMERTZ’S EVALUATION

PRAGUE, Oct 7 (Tanjug) - Dutch parliamentarian Han ten Broeke has stated that the latest evaluation of Serbia’s cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) by ICTY Chief Prosecutor Serge Brammertz will influence his country’s stand on whether to give a green light to Serbia’s next step towards the European Union. In that sense, imposing pressure on the Netherlands will be impossible, Broeke, who is also the chairman of the Dutch Parliament Committee for European Affairs, said in a statement with the Prague-based Radio Free Europe. I think that it is not feasible because Holland is a sovereign state, said Broeke. We make our decisions and estimates independently and they will be based on objective facts established by Brammertz. Brammertz said before the Dutch Parliament on Wednesday that Serbia’s cooperation with the ICTY had improved considerably since he has assumed the office, but that the arrest of former Republika Srpska Army commander Ratko Mladic remains a problem.

EP RAPPORTEUR ANNOUNCES POSITIVE REPORT ON SERBIA

BELGRADE, Oct 6 (Tanjug) - European Parliament (EP) Rapporteur for Serbia Jelko Kacin told Tanjug on Wednesday that his latest report will be commendable, encouraging, realistic and focused on all important issues regarding Serbia’s European integration. Everything that has recently been done, from the visa liberalization, implementation of the EU-Serbia Interim Trade Agreement, ratification of the Stabilization and Association Agreement to a compromise on the EU-Serbia resolution on Kosovo will be stressed and clearly commended, said Kacin, who was on a two-day visit to Belgrade. The EU official also said the EP resolution on Serbia would stimulate the government to turn to other issues by reminding it that the completion of the cooperation with the ICTY and better relations in the region, especially with Kosovo, are what is needed to move closer towards the EU. One of the resolution’s priorities will most certainly be the justice system reform, without which a true rule of law is not possible, and which is one of the key Copenhagen criteria for EU membership, Kacin added. He said he wants to encourage his colleagues in the Serbian parliament to assume a greater, firmer, more positive and more visible role in the process. The Slovenian politician stressed he tried to explain that every criticism should actually be taken as EU and EP’s support to Serbia’s institutions so that they start tackling problems more seriously. The end result of the visit remains to be seen in the weeks and months to come, and the ultimate responsibility rests on Belgrade, Kacin concluded.

EU TO DONATE EUR 6 MILLION FOR ROMA HOUSING IN VOJVODINA

NOVI SAD/BRUSSELS, Oct 6 (Tanjug) - European Commission officials and a delegation from Vojvodina discussed in Brussels on Wednesday the possibility of housing 150 Roma families in the province, a project for which the EU is willing to set aside EUR 6 million. The European Commission officials stressed that they fully support Vojvodina’s model of Roma inclusion, which is unique in Europe, the Provincial Secretariat for Information said in a statement. Provincial Secretary for Labor, Employment and Gender Equality Miroslav Vasin and Director of the Roma Inclusion Office Dusan Jovanovic met with Deputy Head of the European Commission’s European integration unit for Serbia Lars Erik Forsberg, reads the statement.

OSCE HELPS IMPROVE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM IN SOUTH SERBIA

BUJANOVAC, Oct 7 (Tanjug) - OSCE High Commissioner Knut Vollebaek stated in Bujanovac on Thursday that the organization’s office in Serbia is ready and willing to help provide experts for the higher education sector to further its development in that southern Serbian town. At a news conference after a session of a special working group set up to provide conditions for opening higher education institutions in Presevo and Bujanovac, Vollebeak said that Serbian Minister of Public Administration and Local Self-Government Milan Markovic and Minister of Education Zarko Obradovic assured him the government is committed to the implementation of higher education project in southern Serbia. Vollebaek and Markovic were present at the special working group meeting, where it was decided that a higher education institution of economic profile be opened in Bujanovac.

- SERBIA – ECONOMY, FINANCE

SUTANOVAC: USD ONE BILLION ARRANGEMENT FOR DEFENSE INDUSTRY

PRANJANI, Oct 6 (Tanjug) - Serbian Defense Minister Dragan Sutanovac announced Wednesday that Serbia will work on expanding and modernizing its defense industry factories in order to meet the demand in foreign markets. "Every day now we are expecting the confirmation of a USD one billion arrangement which will cover the defense industry export transactions during my mandate," Sutanovac said after a joint visit with U.S. Ambassador to Serbia Mary Warlick to the village of Pranjani in central Serbia. He pointed out that the arrangement is not only related to Serbia’s defense industry sector, but also to a wider range of differently profiled companies. "I believe that this year’s budget will be enough for expanding and modernizing the defense industry capacities, thus making the production faster and more secure," the minister said. Sutanovac recalled that Serbia’s defense industry is currently the biggest exporter of armament and military equipment in Southeastern Europe. He announced that the Kovacica plant in Valjevo, central Serbia, which was remade into a completely new factory, will be opened soon, and added that other defense industry factories are planned to be expanded as well. According to him, there are plans to expand factories out of the scope of the defense industry, but partly related to the military programs of the Krusevac-based manufacturer of machines and components IMK "14. oktobar" and the Trstenik-based industry of hydraulics and pneumatics Prva Petoletka. Sutanovac stressed that citizens whose family members work in the defense industry will no longer have to worry about survival, because there will be plenty of work in the sector in 2011.

AGREEMENT ON COOPERATION WITH KAZAKH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

BELGRADE, Oct 6 (Tanjug) - President of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce (PKS) Milos Bugarin stated that during the visit of a Serbian state-economy delegation, headed by Serbian President Boris Tadic, to Kazakhstan, an agreement on inter-chamber economic cooperation between the PKS and the Kazakh Chamber of Commerce and Industry will be signed in Astana on Thursday. "It is expected that an agreement on free trade with Kazakhstan will be signed, since the Customs Union Agreement, which includes Kazakhstan, has already come into force," Bugarin told Tanjug. He recalled that as for the former Soviet republics, Serbia has already signed agreements with the Russian Federation and Belarus. The creation of the Customs Union of Russian, Belarus and Kazakhstan will not have a negative impact on the trade between Serbia and these countries, the PKS president believes. "We will have the same level of liberalization in relations with the Customs Union," Bugarin said, adding that Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan have the total of 168 million citizens and therefore are respectable economic partners.

SERBIA’S EXPORT TO TURKEY UP BY 110 PERCENT IN 2010

BELGRADE, Oct 6 (Tanjug) - The trade between Serbia and Turkey reached USD 251 million in the first eight months of 2010 and is up by about 110 percent from last year, Srdjan Stevic, who is in charge of bilateral relations with Turkey at the Serbian Ministry of Economy and Regional Development, said Wednesday. Opening a meeting of businessmen from Belgrade and the Turkish province of Usak in the Aegean region, he said that Serbia’s export to Turkey has grown considerably to USD 51 million. Turkish exports to Serbia totaled some USD 200 million in the same period. Stevic expressed expectations that bilateral economic cooperation will grow further as a result of the free trade agreement between Serbia and Turkey which came into force September 1. The delegation of Usak businessmen is on a two-day visit to Belgrade with a view to establishing and intensifying business ties with Serbia. The group of 60 businessmen and officials is led by President of the Usak Chamber of Commerce Ismail Karaman. Karaman expressed expectations that trade will grow significantly as a result of the signed agreements.

- KOSOVO AND METOHIJA

BOGDANOVIC CONCERNED ABOUT KFOR ACTIONS IN KOSOVO

KOSOVSKA MITROVICA, Oct 6 (Tanjug) - Serbian Minister for Kosovo Goran Bogdanovic said Wednesday he is concerned about the tension caused by KFOR and EULEX actions against organized crime in northern Kosovo, and qualified them as psychological and propaganda warfare. Bogdanovic told Tanjug that he wants law and order to be respected in northern Kosovo and all those involved in organized crime prosecuted, but added the international forces need to carry out their actions with more tact. Serbia has nothing against increased presence of security forces, but it is concerned about the situation that has arisen, said Bogdanovic. According to him, there is a psychological and propaganda war going on in Kosovo, because the increased numbers of EULEX and KFOR forces are causing unrest. Commenting on more patrols and checkpoints by EULEX, KFOR and Kosovo police, he pointed out it is evident that the remaining Serbs in northern Kosovo are being pressured and intimidated. "I have told the mayors not to let Kosovo Serbs respond to provocations. What we want is peace, not incidents, and we are against any kind of threat of force. This is a sensitive region. We have to meet with EULEX and KFOR as soon as possible," Bogdanovic concluded.

OBAMA: U.S. DEDICATED TO COOPERATION WITH KOSOVO

PRISTINA, Oct. 6 (Beta) - U.S. President Barack Obama said in a letter to former Kosovo president Fatmir Sejdiu that the U.S. is committed to cooperation with Kosovo, the Democratic Alliance of Kosovo, of which Sejdiu is president, said on Oct. 6. In the letter, Obama also said that the joint goal of both sides is the integration of Kosovo into NATO and the EU. "On behalf of the American people, I express gratitude for the contribution you have given to the strengthening of the friendship between the United States of America and Kosovo during your mandate," the Democratic Alliance of Kosovo quoted Obama as saying. "The U.S. remains dedicated to cooperation with your successor and the elected representatives of Kosovo, in order for progress to continue toward the accomplishing of our common goal full Euro Atlantic integration of Kosovo," the letter said.

HYSENI: TEN COUNTRIES TO RECOGNIZE KOSOVO SOON, CLAIMS HYSENI

PRISTINA, Oct. 6 (Beta) - Kosovo Foreign Minister Skender Hyseni on Oct. 6 said 10 countries have already set a deadline for acknowledging Kosovo. In an interview with Albanian TV Alsat, Hyseni said some 60 countries have promised Pristina to shortly consider the recognition of Kosovo, which unilaterally declared independence in February 2008. "I am not saying that 60 countries will acknowledge Kosovo, because statements are often maliciously misinterpreted. I guarantee you that 10 countries at least have set deadlines, within which they may recognize Kosovo. Either way, I have no intention of rushing into proclaiming recognitions on behalf of any country, before they do it themselves," Hyseni said.

For further information: Minister for Foreign Affairs of Serbia