Shall we listen to the foreign minister of Montenegro? Saturday, February 12, 2005
TDN Editorial by Yusuf KANLI YUSUF KANLI Miodrag Vlahovic, the foreign minister of Montenegro, on a visit to Paris few days ago delivered a speech at the IFRI Institute on "Montenegro and the Euro-Atlantic Community." It was a rather interesting speech that demonstrated the state of affairs in the "post-settlement" situation in Serbia and Montenegro and perhaps could shed light on some outstanding issues in the eastern Mediterranean, where international diplomacy has started to pick up for yet another push for a settlement. In the first part of the speech the minister outlined under what conditions and with what aims the former Republic of Yugoslavia was converted into "The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro" on March 14, 2002. He explained that two reasons constituted the driving force behind the process at the time: The first was the concerns regarding international representation and the second, the Kosovo question. In relation to international representation, Vlahovic explained that it was felt that the State of Serbia and the State of Montenegro would be more influential in the international community as a "state union" and that integration with Europe could be achieved with less difficulty. He further stressed that the claim that "Europe did not favor disintegration" was also raised within this framework but added: "In fact, looking back on the past three years following the conclusion of the agreement in 2002, Serbia and Montenegro lags behind the other regional countries with respect to its relations with the EU. Leave aside that Croatia that is to start accession negotiations with the EU; even Bosnia-Herzegovina, Albania and Macedonia enjoy better relations with the EU. It has become self-evident that the model of a 'state union' based on two constituent states has failed in this respect." Vlahovic further asserted that with regards to the question of Kosovo, it could not be said that the Serbia and Montenegro union has been of any use. Than came the really shocking statement: "In the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, the competence on foreign policy, international economic relations, human rights and minority rights are entrusted to the central government. However, in practice these arrangements have not been implemented as foreseen under the partnership. The institutions of the union act solely as Serbian organizations, as does the Foreign Ministry. Therefore, Montenegro has been forced to establish a separate Foreign Ministry, which gradually became [accepted]. . Our desire [for the] independence of the State of Montenegro should not be considered a separatist approach. In fact, our purpose is to transform the existing 'state union' into a 'union of states.' The only way to maintain the existence and identity of Montenegro is through its recognition as an individual state. . It is said that the EU disapproves of separation, which is considered contrary to the course of history. I acknowledge that the cause of this perception is the 'partition fatigue' in Europe. However, independence is not an obstacle to integration. On the contrary, the case of Czechoslovakia sets the precedent that independence is the prerequisite for integration." No need to comment further as these remarks mean a lot to anyone willing to understand what's being really said. [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=5822 Serbian News Network - SNN news@antic.org http://www.antic.org/
