08/09/04
NACIONAL - Belgrade (I, SN, PG)
Nacional, Pro-Serbian weekly from Belgrade
New Serbian President Supports John Kerry
Belgrade- Serbian officials are pleading to establish good
cooperation with the European Union and the United States. They
unconditionally accept the cooperation with The Hague Tribunal, NATO, the
World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. The President of Serbia,
Boris Tadic, is actively involved in the American presidential campaign, and
openly supports the democratic candidate, John Kerry. Tadic even announced
the improvements of the cooperation between Serbia and the United States.
According to our president, the only obstacle at the moment is the lack of
cooperation with the Hague Tribunal. "Full cooperation with the Tribunal is
for our own sake as well as the resolving of all issues related to the wars
in the former Yugoslavia. All those responsible for war crimes have to be
tried. My victory at the presidential elections strengthened the political
stance, upon which Ratko Mladic and other war crimes suspects have to be
found. If Ratko Mladic is in Serbia, we will arrest him. Serbia will not
fail to obligate its international obligations. Serbian friends in the
American administration and the Congress explicitly emphasized that full
cooperation with The Hague opens the door to Euro Atlantic Integrations,
Boris Tadic said in his written note that was published in the Washington
post in July. He also said that "Serbia is devoted to finding a solution for
the situation in Kosovo. And, Serbia will constructively work with members
of the Contact group and Kosovo's Albanians in order to ensure the
establishment of the long-lasting and just peace in Kosovo". However, all
those who committed crimes against Serbs and their cultural and religious
heritage have to answer for their crimes. In addition to that, 200,000 Serb
refugees and displaced persons must have the opportunity to return to
Kosovo. And, 150 monasteries and churches that were destroyed in March have
to be rebuilt. Joseph Bidden, Tadic's ally and the future secretary of the
State (If Kerry wins elections), supported Tadic. However in his interview
for the Washington Times, he said "Although President Tadic is pleading that
Kosovo remain in Serbia, it is beyond imagination that Belgrade will rule
over the province ever again. The violent anti-Serb riot in March, in which
20 people were murdered and hundreds of Serb houses and churches were
destroyed, showed clearly that the status of Kosovo should be resolved as
soon as possible. The international community should make sure that the
Kosovo assembly has the power in the entire area of the province in order to
prove to the World that the Kosovo's Albanians are capable to run the
province and guarantee basic human rights to all ethnic groups. At the same
time as victims of Serb crimes have a right to expect that those who
committed war crimes over them will be punished, the left over Serbs in
Kosovo and Serb refugees, who want to return to the province, have the right
to expect to be safe in Kosovo". He commended stances of the Serbian
Minister of foreign policy, Vuk Draskovic, describing him as "a passionate
adversary of Slobodan Milosevic's and a wise diplomat". John Kerry, US
presidential candidate, called on American- Serbs to vote for him. A few
days later, he promised to American Albanians that he would resolve the
Kosovo problem. No need to mention that Kosovo will be independent. As a
reminder, Kerry is a passionate adversary of the Serbs and Serbia. He was
one of the two senators who supported sending of the American land-forces to
Serbia in 1999. Michael O'Hanion, one of the Kerry's closest team members,
openly supported the war between American soldiers and Serbs on the
territory of Serbia. One of conditions, Serbia has to fulfill is the
participation of Serbian parties at Kosovo's elections. The Serbian Minister
of Foreign policy, Vuk Draskovic, is the only one from the leading coalition
who has so far supported this idea. In a case that Democrats win
presidential elections, Serbia can expect so called issue of Vojvodina to be
open. Joseph Bidden described Tadic and Draskovic as politicians who
unconditionally accept conditions of the EU and the United States. He
described them as truly democrats with no connections with Tito's communists
or post-war ultranationalists. PS
http://www.tfeagle.army.mil/tfeno/Feature_Story.asp?Article=88073
Serbian News Network - SNN
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http://www.antic.org/
