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ventures into troubled Balkans
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(2) Posted by Foon Rhee, deputy national political editor May 20, 2009 11:49
AM
Vice President Joe Biden continued his diplomatic tour of the troubled Balkans
today, meeting with the leaders of Serbia as he tries to cement the hard-won
peace in the region of tinderbox tensions.
"I came to Serbia on behalf of the Obama-Biden administration with a clear,
distinct message, Mr. President: The United States wants to, would like to,
deepen our cooperation with Serbia to help solve the problems of the region, to
help Serbia become a strong, successful democratic member of the Euro-Atlantic
community. That's our objective," Biden said, according to remarks released by
the White House.
"Ever since the end of World War II, generations of Europeans and Americans
have worked very hard to build a Europe that is whole, free, and at peace.
Southeast Europe remains the missing piece, and Serbia is central to Southeast
Europe's future. Simply put, the region cannot fully succeed without Serbia
playing the constructive and leading role."
(His full remarks are below, followed by a joint statement with the European
Union envoy.)
On Tuesday, Biden spoke in Sarajevo to the parliament of Bosnia and
Herzegovina, warning lawmakers to resist the nationalism of ethnic strife that
led to the bloody civil war during the 1990s that didn't end until intervention
by NATO led by the United States.
Biden wraps up his visit Thursday in Kosovo, where he will meet that nation's
leaders, address the assembly, and go to Camp Bondsteel to speak to US and NATO
peacekeepers
BIDEN'S REMARKS
Mr. President -- President Tadic, thank you very much for your warm welcome and
your comments. And thank you for your strong, and I would add, forward-looking
leadership in a time of significant challenge -- but also, as we spoke about, a
time of real opportunity, genuine opportunity.
I came to Serbia on behalf of the Obama-Biden administration with a clear,
distinct message, Mr. President: The United States wants to, would like to,
deepen our cooperation with Serbia to help solve the problems of the region, to
help Serbia become a strong, successful democratic member of the Euro-Atlantic
community. That's our objective.
Ever since the end of World War II, generations of Europeans and Americans have
worked very hard to build a Europe that is whole, free, and at peace. Southeast
Europe remains the missing piece, and Serbia is central to Southeast Europe's
future. Simply put, the region cannot fully succeed without Serbia playing the
constructive and leading role -- which you've begun, Mr. President.
President Tadic and I had a very productive -- and I apologize for the
diplomatic speak, but it's real. We had a very open and frank exchange. We are
old acquaintances. We talked about renewing the relationship between the United
States and Serbia, and about the critical role that Serbia is playing in this
region, and I might add, beyond.
The President and I both acknowledge that in order to move our relationship
forward, we need to find a way forward on the few issues on which we disagree,
the few issues that divide us.
The first is Kosovo. The President stated to me privately what he stated
publicly. But I believe we can agree to disagree, provided that we have
reasonable expectations for one another. The United States does not -- I
emphasize, does not expect Serbia to recognize the independence of Kosovo. It
is not a pre-condition for our relationship or our support for Serbia becoming
part of the European Union.
And we will continue, the United States will continue to insist that Serbs
receive in Kosovo the strongest possible protection and guarantees of their
safety and security and participation. In return, we expect Serbia to cooperate
with the European Union and other key international actors, and that we expect
them to cooperate on Kosovo and to look for pragmatic solutions that will
improve the lives of all the people of Kosovo -- Serbs and Albanians -- and
avoid making them victims of political disagreement.
Similarly, we look to Serbia to help the United States and the EU promote its
efforts to build a sovereign, democratic, multi-ethnic state with vibrant
entities. We look for that for Bosnia and Herzegovina. We look to Serbia to
build peaceful, positive relations with all its neighbors, which is why we very
much, Mr. President, appreciate your recent efforts to reach out to Croatia,
Montenegro, and Macedonia.
And we expect Belgrade to make every possible effort to bring to justice those
wanted by the International Criminal Tribunal at the Hague, which you are
attempting to do, and to finally close this chapter in history.
Acknowledging our differences and finding constructive ways to work through
them is one part of renewing this relationship. Equally important though, Mr.
President, is building on the many common views that we share, and working
together in this region, in Europe, and beyond Europe.
In that regard, let me state two basic principles as clearly as I can. First,
the United States strongly supports Serbian membership in the European Union
and expanding security cooperation between Serbia, the United States, and our
allies. We will use our influence, our energy, and our resources to promote
Serbia's Euro-Atlantic aspirations.
Second, the United States will work to deepen the direct ties between our two
countries. Our military to military relationship is already strong, with more
than a 140 joint projects since 2004 -- and we believe it can grow even
stronger.
Our economic partnership has tremendous possibilities. As you mentioned,
America is a leading investor in Serbia. American companies are leading
investors in Serbia. And more and more, our major companies are investing
directly here, helping to create good jobs. Your success is our success.
Looking forward, we want to pursue more cultural and educational changes, so
the new generations of Serbs and Americans can understand and appreciate each
other's background, history, and values better than they have in the past and
to demonstrate the growing respect that we share for one another. This is a
relationship based upon mutual respect.
Mr. President, as you know, the Obama-Biden administration just passed the
hundred-day mark in our administration. And we felt it at the front end of our
administration -- we felt it very important early on in this administration to
come to the Balkans, to come to Serbia to demonstrate our commitment to the
region and our desire for a strong, new relationship between the United States
and Serbia.
Mr. President, I'm pleased that we have taken this important first step today.
And I look forward, as we discussed in private, to the United States and Serbia
taking many more steps together in the days to come. And I thank you for your
warm welcome.
Joint Statement issued by United States Vice President Joe Biden and European
Union High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana
“As representatives of the United States and the European Union, we visited
Sarajevo with a message of support and concern. We support Bosnia and
Herzegovina, a single state with two entities. We support the Dayton Accords.
We support the aspirations of the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina to join
European and Trans-Atlantic institutions. We also support the reforms that will
be needed to realize this European future. And we support leaders who have the
courage to reach across the ethnic divide to find compromise, build trust,
foster stability and bring prosperity to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“We are concerned by statements and actions in recent years that threaten the
territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the powers of the state, and
the rights of the entities. We are also concerned by economic conditions and
note the need for greater fiscal controls, financial accountability and
transparency. And we are concerned for the independence of judicial
institutions and the rule of law.
“This year Bosnia and Herzegovina can take an important step towards NATO and
EU membership by completing the five objectives and two conditions set by the
Peace Implementation Council for the closure of Office of the High
Representative and the transition to the Office of the EU Special
Representative. The remaining steps are clear: resolution of the distribution
of state property between the state and the entities; resolution of defense
property, including destruction of excess weapons, ammunition and explosives;
and a positive assessment by the Peace Implementation Committee of the
situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina based on compliance with the Dayton
Agreement. We will look for progress by June and completion in October. We
welcome and applaud High Representative Inzko’s leadership in guiding this
process.
“This transition is just a first step, and much more work will be needed.
Movement on the path to EU and NATO membership will bring genuine benefits to
the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina. These could eventually include: visa-free
travel; increased trade and investments; support for economic development and a
prosperous, stable future for BiH, in an integrated Western Balkans region.
This will require concerted effort and compromise to achieve needed reform,
including a functioning BiH Constitution.
“The United States and the EU will support this process of growth and reform.
And we look forward to returning to a Bosnia and Herzegovina that is
progressing deliberately on the path towards the EU and NATO.”
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