Dacic: Community of Serb Municipalities No. 1 Prerequisite

Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic (BETAPHOTO/AMIR HAMZAGIC)

Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic has said that the issue of recognizing Kosovo and its membership in the United Nations are "red lines" for Belgrade, while the forming of a Community of Serb Municipalities is the "prerequisite of all prerequisites."

"That is something we really do not need to talk about again, or negotiate, because it is supposed to be something we agreed on when we signed that agreement 10 years ago," the Serbian foreign minister said in an interview with the Voice of America on Feb. 3.

At the end of his visit to Washington, where he was a guest at the National Prayer Breakfast and met with U.S. officials in the State Department and Congress, Dacic said that it was very important that "in both Washington and Brussels, even though they know about Serbia's 'red lines,' they are describing Serbia's approach to the dialogue as constructive and responsible."

When asked about the six conditions for the forming of the Community of Serb Municipalities set by Kosovo Premier Albin Kurti, Dacic replied that it was very difficult to discuss what Kurti was proposing when there was something that had been signed 10 years ago.

"International representatives have told me that he (Kurti) told them that he will not form the Community of Serb Municipalities before that agreement is signed, and before the signing of the agreement he is asking that the five European Union member countries that have not recognized Kosovo do so. So, they recognize Kosovo and then he will start implementing this agreement, and second, that he be told the exact date when the application (of Kosovo) for membership in the European Union and NATO will be accepted," he said.

Dacic added that at this time criticism and pressure were primarily aimed at Pristina. "As for Belgrade, we will lead a policy that will be based on the protection of national and state interests, but also on the future of Serbia. We will not let sanctions be imposed on Serbia... That means we should be flexible, but also not to be flexible below one of the red lines we have talked about," he said.

Asked about sanctions against Russia, Dacic said that he thought Serbia was not close to reconsidering its position.