http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/06/AR2008020601
233.html
Battle over EU, Kosovo paralyses Serbian government
By Douglas Hamilton
Reuters
Wednesday, February 6, 2008; 7:25 AM
BELGRADE (Reuters) - Serbia was politically paralyzed on Wednesday over an
invitation from the European Union to sign a pact that nationalists say is
simply a trap to get the government to concede the independence of Kosovo.
The coalition of nationalist Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica was on the
verge of collapse over the offer, a one-of-a-kind deal tendered as a
sweetener to Serbia because EU members cannot agree to offer it a full
pre-membership accord.
A last-minute decision by the EU to postpone the signing ceremony scheduled
for Thursday looked unlikely to heal the fundamental rift this has exposed
over Serbia's central objective -- preservation of Kosovo or EU membership.
One nationalist minister warned pro-EU Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic
he would be a "traitor" if he signed such a deal.
Kostunica has not appeared in public since his pro-EU coalition partner and
rival, President Boris Tadic, won re-election at the weekend by a margin so
narrow it underlined the deep split in Serbia's electorate.
He has issued two statements, one on Monday saying the EU "political
agreement" was a trap that Serbia would never sign, and a second on
Wednesday saying parliament must meet to quell political disunity.
But the speaker of parliament, Oliver Dulic, says the national assembly will
not take up the issue until there is a clear government position to debate.
Kostunica has cancelled cabinet's regular Thursday session despite demands
by a majority of ministers for an urgent meeting.
SECOND FIDDLE
"This is an exceptionally serious situation, the government is in
paralysis," said Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic of Tadic's Democratic Party, a
few hours before the EU announced it would, "with deep regret," hold off on
signing the pact.
The EU is to send a supervisory mission to Kosovo ahead of its independence
declaration in the coming weeks. Kostunica says concluding a political
accord now that does not guarantee Serbian sovereignty would mean conceding
Kosovo's secession.
Tadic was re-elected on a pledge of pursuing EU membership no matter what
happens with Kosovo, and has made clear he will not back down after months
of playing second fiddle to Kostunica and his drive to make Kosovo Serbia's
one and only issue.
The EU wanted to sign the accord -- focusing on trade, visa and education
issues -- in the hope of preventing a nationalist backlash over Kosovo,
Serbia's medieval heartland and now home to a 90-percent Albanian
population.
Kostunica wants to bring the issue to parliament where he can rely on the
votes of the nationalist Radicals, Serbia's strongest single party, to back
his case in a showdown over the country's future direction.
A draft resolution put forward by his Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) said
"the parliament orders the government" not to sign the interim political
agreement as long as the EU insists on sending its mission to Kosovo.
(Editing by Timothy Heritage)
Serbian News Network - SNN
news@antic.org
http://www.antic.org/
