Daily Survey

BELGRADE, March 27 (Beta) - On March 27, President Boris Tadic said that the cabinet needs to work with legal experts to come up with new legal measures for use against countries that have recognized Kosovo.

"The cabinet just concluded that the situation needs to be analyzed once more and that legal experts need to be consulted," Tadic told reporters after a visit to the University Center for Handicapped Students.

He added that the matter needs reconsideration because a previous proposal merely listed possible measures without highlighting any priorities.

"I expect the legal experts to assume their share of the responsibility in the days and weeks to come and propose legal measures in line with the principle of safeguarding national interests," Tadic went on to say.

According to Tadic, the experts also need to consider the fact that measures that cannot be enforced are pointless. "We don't need to embark on campaigns that can impact on local public opinion but are useless from an international standpoint." He also noted efficiency as an important criterion.

JEREMIC: INDONESIA IS AGAINST INDEPENDENCE OF KOSOVO

JAKARTA, Mar 27 (Tanjug) - Indonesia does not support the unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo and Metohija and believes that a solution for the future status of the province should be reached through negotiations and by respecting international law, Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vuk Jeremic told Tanjug on Thursday.

After his meeting with Indonesian Foreign Minister Noer Hasan Wirajuda and Parliament Speaker Agung Laksono in Jakarta, Jeremic said that Indonesia is "one of the key countries in our strategy to try and limit the number of countries deciding to unilaterally recognize Kosovo and Metohija." "It is of great importance that we agreed today that the Kosovo problem is not a religious but purely an ethnic and political issue," said Jeremic.

Indonesia's support is also very important because we plan to launch an initiative to seek, through the UN General Assembly, the International Court of Justice's opinion on the legality of the unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo, said Jeremic, adding that Belgrade had received Indonesia's support on the issue. Jeremic also said that he had also discussed with Indonesia's officials bilateral cooperation, prospects of trade increase and expanding economic relations with Indonesia.

SERBIA NOT ADVOCATING DIVISION OF KOSOVO, SAYS JEREMIC

JAKARTA, March 27 (Beta) - Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic stated in Jakarta that the proposal of the Ministry for Kosovo and Metohija represents a transitional solution for Serbia's cooperation with UNMIK in the new circumstances, after the unilateral declaration of Kosovo's independence.

The Serbian Foreign Ministry has dismissed claims of certain world news agencies which, in their reports about Jeremic's news conference in Jakarta, stated that "the proposal on cooperation the Ministry for Kosovo and Metohija sent to the U.N. mission in Kosovo represents an initiative for the division of the southern Serbian province."

"Serbia is not advocating a division of Kosovo and remains dedicated to the preservation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its territory," Jeremic said.

"Serbia wants to find a way for cooperation in the new circumstances, toward the calming of tensions in Kosovo and Metohija, for conflicts to be avoided, which we have seen in the past few weeks," it was said in the statement of the Serbian Foreign Ministry.

The Ministry has appealed to domestic and foreign journalists to accurately report on Jeremic's statements from Jakarta.

SERBIAN CHIEF OF STAFF, KFOR COMMANDER CONFER IN NIS

BELGRADE, Mar 27 (Tanjug) - Serbian Army Chief of Staff Lt.Gen. Zdravko Ponos and KFOR Commander Lt.Gen. Xabier Bout de Marnhac conferred Thursday in Nis on the security situation along the administrative boundary and in the zones under Serbian Army and KFOR responsibility.

They particularly discussed the developments in northern Kosovska Mitrovica on March 17 and earlier developments at the Jarinje checkpoint, the Defense Ministry said. They pointed to the importance of exchanging information and organizing simultaneous patrols along the administrative boundary to prevent potential incidents and illegal crossings. They also emphasized the importance of cooperation between the Serbian Army and KFOR at all levels, and described it as good and in keeping with international commitments.

FLEINER: BETTER TO SUE STATES THAN TO SEEK COURT'S OPINION

FREIBURG, Mar 27 (Tanjug) - Constitutional Law Professor Thomas Fleiner on Thursday said in a statement with Tanjug that it would be better for Serbia to file a suit with the International Court of Justice against those countries that had recognized independence of Kosovo and Metohija than to seek its opinion through the United Nations General Assembly, because the request would have to be backed by the majority UN GA member states.

The Swiss professor explained that by filing a lawsuit directly Serbia would have a status of a participant in the proceedings with all rights deriving from that status, and that by requesting the ICJ's opinion on the legality of the act of recognition Serbia would find itself in a "privileged position," but not as a party in the proceedings. "The proposal to request the UN General Assembly to ask for an opinion on the legality of the recognition of the unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo and Metohija is possible only if the idea is backed by the majority of the UN GA member states," said Fleiner.

He underscored that the Court's reply to the question would not be obligatory, because there are no parties directly involved in a lawsuit. Should Serbia file a lawsuit against those countries directly, it would have a status of a party included in the lawsuit, with all rights deriving from the status. In case of a request for an opinion, Serbia would have a privileged status but not those rights," said Fleiner.

SUPERVISED INDEPENDENCE IS BEST FOR KOSOVO, BUSH SAYS

ZAGREB, March 27 (Beta) - U.S. President George Bush stated in the evening of March 27 that supervised independence was the best solution for Kosovo, with the best prospects of leading to peace in the region, and expressed hope that the Serbian government will realize this.

In a brief interview with Croatian national television in Washington, ahead of his visit to Zagreb, Bush said Kosovo represented the last chapter in the breakup of the former Yugoslavia and an end to a very difficult period.

Kosovo has a chance with supervised independence. I support this decision because I believe this is best for the region and there are greater prospects of peace, the U.S. president said.

I hope the Serbian government will realize that the Serbs in Kosovo are treated with respect as a minority, and that it will in time help Kosovo separate, instead of trying to prevent its secession, Bush said.

The U.S. president also said he supported Croatia's admission into NATO, as well as of the other two countries that are hoping for this Albania and Macedonia but added that he is unable to predict the decision his colleagues in the Alliance will make.

Bush said he hoped that Croatia, just like Albania and Macedonia, will be admitted into NATO. He believes that Croatia is "in a very good position" to be admitted, and expects that his colleagues share his opinion.

PROPOSAL ON FUNCTIONAL DIVISION OF AUTHORITY IS UNACCEPTABLE

PRISTINA, March 27 (Beta) - The proposal on the functional division of authority in Kosovo is unacceptable for representatives of the Kosovo institutions, of the international community and of the Serbs living south of the Ibar River, the participants in a news conference in the Media Center in Caglavica said on March 27.

At the gathering dedicated to the debate about the proposal on the functional division of authority in Kosovo, it was said that the best plan for the solving of the issues and problems in Kosovo was the plan of international mediator Martti Ahtisaari.

Kosovo Assembly Speaker Jakup Krasniqi said that any solution that did not take Ahtisaari's plan into consideration "is lacking seriousness and is unacceptable for the institutions of Kosovo."

In his words, the proposal on the functional division of authority in Kosovo "is in contradiction with Ahtisaari's comprehensive document, the deployment of the EULEX mission and the new reality in Kosovo, which has existed since June 1999."

Krasniqi said any solution that ignores Martti Ahtisaari's proposal does not deserve to be discussed.

Great Britain's ambassador in Pristina, David Blunt, stated that he had learned about the proposal on the functional division of authority in Kosovo from the Belgrade media, and that the majority of ministers of the Serbian government had not been consulted about this proposal. Blunt said everyone should bear in mind that Kosovo is an independent state, recognized by more than 30 countries, five of which are in the region.

He said the plan of Martti Ahtisaari has been supported by a major portion of the international community, out of conviction that this is the best possible solution and that it would lead to a functional state in Kosovo. He recollected that one of the main principles of the Contact Group was that there can be no division of Kosovo.

The chairwoman of the executive committee of the Serb People's Council of Kosovo and Metohija, Rada Trajkovic, said that one should certainly take into consideration the fact that the Albanian majority had declared Kosovo's independence, which some countries have recognized. She said the representatives of the Serbs in Kosovo have not discussed the proposal on the functional division of authority.

The minister for Kosovo and Metohija in the Serbian government, Slobodan Samardzic, has proposed the functional division of authority between the Albanians and the Serbs in Kosovo, and requested that authority in areas populated by a Serb majority be exercised by UNMIK and the institutions of Serbia.

UNMIK RELYING ON FURTHER COOPERATION WITH MAYOR REDZEPI

KOSOVSKA MITROVICA, March 27 (Tanjug) - UNMIK Spokesman Gyorgy Kakuk said on Thursday that continued cooperation is expected from southern Kosovska Mitrovica municipal head Bajram Redzepi, in spite of his announcement that he will break all contacts with UNMIK Regional Administrator Gerard Gallucci.

UNMIK does not comment on media reports, Kakuk told Tanjug, but it continues to maintain that the best way for ensuring peace and stability, as well as the integrity of Kosovo, is through dialogue and cooperation with all local authorities. This naturally includes also Mayor Redzepi, who is highly appreciated by UNMIK and with whom very positive relations have been maintained so far, the spokesman said. Redzepi yesterday announced he would sever all relations with UNMIK Regional Administrator Gallucci because he is an obstacle to the realization of legality in Kosovska Mitrovica.

The United Nations New York Headquarters can return Gallucci to work, Redzepi told reporters yesterday, but he would not cooperate with this regional administrator. According to Redzepi, Gallucci had been opposed to the UNMIK and KFOR action carried out on March 17, when these forces stormed the building of the Court in the Serbian-populated northern part of Kosovska Mitrovica and arrested the Serbian judiciary workers. Gallucci tendered his resignation after this action, but it was not accepted at the New York headquarters and he resumed his duties as the UNMIK regional administrator on Wednesday.

EULEX NEEDS NATO SUPPORT IN KOSOVO, SAYS FEITH

PRISTINA, March 27 (Beta) - The European Union's special representative in Kosovo, Pieter Feith, said on March 27 that the EU police and legal mission (EULEX) will need protection from NATO if it wants to establish control in Kosovo.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Feith said 16,000 members of KFOR should enable his personnel to convince the Serbs to allow them to work in their territories.

"The mission (EULEX) will depend on NATO forces to secure the territory," Feith said.

Commenting on a statement of Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic, who said in Jakarta that the proposal of the Ministry for Kosovo and Metohija represented a transitional solution for Serbia's cooperation with UNMIK in the new circumstances of unilaterally declared independence, Feith said there was little chance for this proposal to be supported internationally.

He said the Serbian authorities lacked a more constructive approach regarding the independence of Kosovo and the deployment of the EU mission.

However, he said the Kosovo Serbs had demonstrated that they "have responded" to the EU messages, in which "special benefits" for the minorities in Kosovo have been emphasized.

ALEKSEEV: RUSSIA WILL NOT CHANGE ITS STAND ON KOSOVO

BELGRADE, March 27 (Beta) - Outgoing Russian Ambassador in Belgrade Alexander Alekseev on March 27 expressed the expectation that the official Russian policy on Kosovo and Metohija and Russia's relations with Serbia will not undergo any changes even after he leaves his post.

During a visit to the Serbian Radical Party, two days before leaving for Moscow, Alekseev told the press that he is sure the excellent relations and cooperation between the two countries will be continued on both the state and party levels.

"We are very concerned with the difficulties our Serbian friends are experiencing, and we are ready for even better and greater cooperation with the Serbs for the preservation of Serbia's integrity, but also for the development of bilateral cooperation," Alekseev told journalists.

He reiterated that Russia opposes NATO enlargement, and assessed that the alliance's enlargement "is not a natural process."

He also added that he visited the Radicals and the Socialist Party of Serbia because those parties had invited him to a meeting before he departs for Moscow, and that he would respond to such an invitation from all other parties in Serbia.

Deputy president of the Radicals Tomislav Nikolic assessed that Alekseev will continue monitoring this part of Europe, especially Serbia, in his new position as the head of the European Department for Southeastern Europe.

SERBIA - ECONOMY

BEGINNING OF WORK ON HORGOS-POZEGA HIGHWAY DELAYED

BELGRADE, March 27 (Beta) - At its session held on March 27, the Serbian government by a majority of votes rejected the proposal made by the Ministry of Infrastructure to begin construction of the Horgos-Pozega highway.

Minister of Infrastructure Velimir Ilic told journalists after the government session that, due to the decision, work on the highway will not begin on April 1.

"The biggest project in Serbian history has been halted because it was outvoted for political reasons, and owing to that the project will not be realized," Ilic said.

He said that the work should have started on April 1, but that it had been blocked because of the decision of a part of the government (the Democratic Party and G17 Plus) to vote against it.

At the end of March 2007, the Serbian government signed a concession agreement with the PORR consortium on the construction of the Horgos-Pozega highway.

By the end of March 2008, the concessionaire is to submit a bank guarantee that it has provided funds for the total investment, estimated at over EUR1 billion, but several days ago, it requested the Serbian government to authorize construction with a partial guarantee, covering only the first year of the construction.

The highway is to be 244 kilometers long, and the section running through Vojvodina has largely been constructed.

TADIC: NO HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION WITHOUT GUARANTEES

BELGRADE, March 27 (Beta) - Serbian President Boris Tadic on March 27 said that the Horgos-Pozega highway should not be constructed without bank guarantees.

"A highway cannot be constructed without guarantees, because then there will be no highway," Tadic told journalists after visiting the University Center for Handicapped Students.

According to him, highway construction is a vital, and not a political question, since infrastructure provides people and investors with access to jobs and new sites for the construction of factories.

"The idea is not to start the construction of a highway, but to finally finish it, and to stop being one of the few European countries without a developed highway network, and we can finish doing all that in the next five years," Tadic stated.

Tadic also said that guarantees and a concession are one way to begin construction, and that the other way is through a line of credit the state can receive.

He said that, in case the state receives the credit, there is no need to obtain the right for highway construction through a concession agreement, but through another kind of tender.

"In every developed country in the world, guarantees exist and serve as financial security, ensuring that an infrastructure project is eventually going to be finished," Tadic said.

Stressing that construction without guarantees would fly in the face of elementary logic, Tadic underlined that there is no infrastructure project that is not preceded by a guarantee.

KOSTUNICA CRITICIZES ANNOUNCEMENTS OF HIGHWAY WORK DELAY

BELGRADE, March 27 (Beta) - Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica on March 27 assessed that the "real destruction of the country's economic development" is the announcement by Democratic Party ministers that they will vote to stop the beginning of work on the construction of the Horgos-Pozega highway.

"I remind you that only a few days ago, the deputy prime minister [Bozidar Djelic] stated that, if the concessionaires want to finance the work themselves this year, then the work can start right away," Kostunica told journalists.

He assessed that it is now obvious that someone ordered that work on the highway be obstructed, and that such a decision represents direct and immeasurable harm to Serbia and its citizens.

"Due to this irrational decision, the direct responsibility for all potential longterm consequences for the country's economic development will fall on the present ministers from the Democratic Party," Kostunica said.

The Democratic Party has a majority of ministers in the Serbian government.

The realization of the concession agreement on the highway construction became uncertain because the concessionaire asked to submit a bank guarantee covering only the first year of the construction, instead of the entire investment.

At the beginning of this week, it was confirmed that Deutsche Bank, which should have followed the investment, notified the concessionaire that it cannot provide a guarantee for the whole investment until the end of 2008.

DJELIC PROPOSES NEW GOVERNMENT SESSION TO DISCUSS CONCESSION

BELGRADE, March 28 (Tanjug) - Serbian Deputy Premier Bozidar Djelic has launched an initiative with Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica for the calling of an emergency session of the government to consider possibilities for giving an additional 90-day deadline to the holder of the Horgos-Pozega highway concession to meet the obligations stemming from the concession contract.

Addressing a press conference at the Serbian government, Djelic said this initiative was backed by all the ministers from the ranks of the Democratic Party (DS) and the G17 Plus, and added that failure to accept this compromise proposal would result in the failure of the concession.

"We are convinced that we will manage to secure all the necessary guarantees for our citizens and the state during that period, and that, secondly, all technical steps are carried out so that construction could begin during this building season," Djelic said. Should the concession fail, Serbia would need up to two years for the realization of a new tender for the construction of the Horgos-Pozega highway, he said.

"It is a fact that the concession-holder Por-Alpina has not secured either the financial or the technical conditions that were envisaged, but that is not a reason to take the other extreme decision and to annul such an important project," Djelic said. Djelic said he had proposed at yesterday's Serbian government session that the problem should be resolved in this way, but that the proposal was not included in the agenda because it had not been formally presented. "Here is the solution," Djelic said, adding that there is also good will on the side of the concession-holder to resolve all controversial issues.

BEGINNING OF PRODUCTION OF ARMS FOR IRAQ, SUTANOVAC

BELGRADE, March 28 (Tanjug) - Defense Minister Dragan Sutanovac has said that after many years Serbia is exporting arms to Iraq again, as well as 20 jets of Utva factory. Sutanovac told the Friday issue of the daily Blic that Serbia will export to Iraq pistols, various ammunition, ballistic equipment, amours and mortars.

He said that the annual production of pistols in the Serbian weapons manufacturer Zastava Oruzje of 17,000 pistols will be exported to Iraq, including 3,000 specially crafted showpieces top Iraqi officials will give as presents. The money for 'the deal of the century' arrived to a domestic bank's account and shall be distributed within the shortest possible time to all factories participating in that deal: export of arms and military equipment to Iraq worth USD 235 million.

WORLD BANK OPENS PUBLIC INFO CENTER IN SERBIA

BELGRADE, March 27 (Beta) - In the premises of the British Council in Belgrade on March 27, the World Bank opened the first public information center in Serbia, which will enable free Internet access to the international financial institution’s database.

The center enables a free search of the World Bank website (www.worldbank.org), as well as other developmental institutions, and access to the World Bank statistical databases, such as the world development index, global funding of development, and the World Bank project documentation, World Bank representative Mirjana Popovic said at the opening.

According to her, the info center will also enable free access to the World Bank Electronic Library, which contains over 3,500 publications, and information about the institution’s projects in Serbia and the world.

Access to the current educational programs of the World Bank Institute will also be made possible, as well as to the discussions and video conferences on various developmental topics in the world, scholarships and employment possibilities, Popovic added.

The head of the World Bank Office in Serbia, Simon Grey, assessed that the opening of the World Bank public info center in Belgrade represents a small step that will provide Serbia better access to information, and its faster integration into the international community.

SERBIA - EU

SLOVENIAN, FINNISH FMS DISCUSS SERBIA'S ACCESSION TO EU

LJUBLJANA, Mar 27 (Tanjug) - Slovenian and Finnish Foreign Ministers Dimitrij Rupel and Ilkka Kanerva conferred Thursday in Ljubljana on ways of helping Serbia in its endeavors for integration in the European Union.

This will be one of the main topics of the two-day informal meeting of EU foreign ministers starting Friday at Brdo pri Kranju. Rupel and Kanerva also discussed prospects for stabilization of the situation in Kosovo which declared independence last month. Several EU member-states have recognized Kosovo, despite strong opposition by Serbia.

RUPEL: BRUSSELS WANTS TO ENCOURAGE SERBIA ON THE ROAD TO EU

LJUBLJANA, March 27 (Beta) - Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel said on March 27 that Brussels wished to encourage Serbia in its association with the EU, reiterating that an invitation remained open for Serbia to sign the Stabilization and Association Agreement, after it fulfills the conditions that have been set. In talks with reporters from the countries of the Western Balkans, Rupel said that Kosovo also had clear European prospects and that the European Commission will use the appropriate instruments for the carrying out of reforms and for the economic development of Kosovo.

He said the strengthening of Serbia's European prospects will be some of the key issues on the agenda of the informal meeting of EU foreign ministers, which will begin on March 28 in the town of Brdo kod Kranja.

"On the one hand, we are attempting to help our Serbian friends come closer to us, and on the other, we are all, I presume, including the Serbian government, interested in seeing stability and prosperity in Kosovo," said the foreign minister of Slovenia, which is presiding over the EU.

Rupel said he wished to once again invite "his Serbian friends" to sign the Stabilization and Association Agreement, but added that he did not know whether this would be possible or not, considering that, as he said, several European countries are not accepting Belgrade's arguments regarding cooperation with the Hague tribunal.

He said he was very sorry Serbia had not consented to sign the political agreement offered by Brussels.

Rupel also said he understood that association with the EU "is a sensitive issue" for certain politicians in Serbia, but that he hoped for European orientation to prevail in Serbia, despite "the difficult electoral and all other situations."

At the informal meeting in Brdo kod Kranja, the EU ministers will discuss the Western Balkans on March 29, and meet with representatives of the countries of this region.