Ivanovic against unilateral reinstatement of judges

KOSOVSKA MITROVICA, June 25 (Tanjug) - State Secretary with the Serbian Ministry for Kosovo-Metohija Oliver Ivanovic said Friday that unilateral moves in connection with the reopening of the Kosovska Mitrovica District Court can destabilize the situation in the city.

In a statement with Tanjug, Ivanovic said that the announced return of two Serb and two Albanian judges to the District Court without previous agreement with Serbia is unacceptable.

"Any unilateral move can trigger a strong reaction if it is construed as a threat to the safety of Serbs in northern Kosovo," Ivanovic warned.

The deadline for the reinstatement of judges at the District Court in northern Mitrovica has been set for mid July, said head of the Kosovo Judicial Council Enver Peci.

Pristina daily Koha Ditore reports that the same has been confirmed by President of the Mitrovica District Court Kaplan Baruti and EULEX officials.

Four judges - two Serbs and two Albanians - are slated to return to the District Court, where they will work together with colleagues from EULEX.

Koha Ditore writes that Ruzica Simic and Milena Djeric have agreed to work under Kosovo law, only asking for EULEX protection during their stay in northern Mitrovica.

Ivanovic said he is not sure the paper got the names correct, adding he believes two different judges have been appointed.

"Judges who belong to the Serbian justice system must consider how the Justice Ministry would feel about this move. Anyone who decides to take this step must also take public sentiment into account," Ivanovic said.

He said that individual solutions are untenable and that everyone needs to wait for EULEX and the Serbian government to reach a comprehensive agreement regarding the justice system.

Only international judges and prosecutors are currently working at the District Court in Kosovska Mitrovica, which was closed after Kosovo unilaterally declared independence.

Judges to return to Kosovska Mitrovica court mid-July

PRISTINA, June 25 (Tanjug) - Chairman of the Kosovo Judicial Council Enver Peci has stated that mid-July has been set as the deadline for judges to return to the District Court in the northern part of Kosovska Mitrovica, Koha Ditore, a Kosovo daily, reported Friday.

This was confirmed by Kosovska Mitrovica District Court President Kaplan Baruti and representatives of EULEX, the EU mission in Kosovo.

Four judges should return to the court, two Serbs and two ethnic Albanians, who will work together with their colleagues from EULEX.

Positive steps were made and the court should begin its work mid-July, said Peci, adding that the move was supported and guaranteed by EULEX.

According to Koha Ditore, the two Serb judges, Ruzica Simic and Milena Djeric have accepted to work under Kosovo laws, but asked for EULEX protection during their stay in Kosovska Mitrovica.

Vejvoda: ICJ opinion opens possibility for dialogue

WASHINGTON, June 25 (Tanjug) - The opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in respect of the legality of Kosovo's proclamation of independence is important since it opens possibility to launch a dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina and address the unresolved issues, Executive Director of the Balkan Trust for Democracy Ivan Vejvoda stated on Thursday.

In an interview for the Washington-based Voice of America (VoA), Vejvoda recalled that no one knowns what the decision would be like.

He stated that the EU path could be the basis for a type of a compromise in the talks between Belgrade and Pristina, which could follow the ICJ opinion.

According to him, Belgrade and Pristina could open a dialogue on technical issues that are vital to all people in Kosovo, including Serbs.

Vejvoda said that certain states should not interpret the opening of the technical talks as a signal and consequently recognize the independence of Kosovo.

Large countries, such as Russia, Brazil and China, have not recognized the independence of Kosovo and I do not anticipate their change of stand in foreseeable future. Those countries and some other much smaller do not recognize the independence of Kosovo since they are faced with similar issues on their own territory, Vejvoda said.

Kostunica: Serbia is not taking care of itself

NIS, June 25 (Tanjug) - The leader of the opposition Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) Vojislav Kostunica pointed out Thursday evening in Nis, the city in the south of Serbia, that “in its relations with the EU, Serbia is not taking care of itself.“

At the DSS panel discussion on current political situation and economic recovery, Kosatunica said that Serbia disagrees with the EU over the unilateral decalaration of Kosovo-Metohija indipendence and that “ the EU seems to have reached the point of fatigue in respect to its further enlargement“

“During negotiations on EU admission, no other country but Serbia has insisted on the policy that EU accession has no alternative,” stated Kostunica, the former president of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the former prime minister of Serbia.

Kostunica believes that it is because of this, that Belgrade will have to assume the responsibility for Serbia's failure to join the EU one day.

Speaking about the necessary features of Serbia's national policy, which at the time when it was in power the DSS adhered to, Kostunica said that Serbia should take care of its own interests, reach the most difficult decisions by consensus in the Parliament and make its policy public and transparent.

Calls for Kosovo recognition will not change anything

BELGRADE, June 25 (Tanjug) - The Serbian government thinks that the Resolution on Kosovo's European integration, which was adopted by the European Parliament (EP) Foreign Policy Committee on Wednesday and which requires that all EU member countries reinforce their joint approach to Kosovo, is a document with a politically-declarative character and not a binding one, Belgrade-based daily Politika reported on Friday.

“Neither this document nor the EP's decisions can change the EU's unified policy on this issue, because its policy is one of the status-neutral approach. The decision itself is not binding, its character is politically-declarative and will not change anything,” Politika's source in the government stated, pointing out that the EP only expressed the will of a certain number of MPs from the countries which have already recognised Kosovo's independence.

“Serbia feels encouraged by the fact that, just like before, the EP was not able to adopt a unified approach on this issue. It was not possible to achieve a unified stand, since the EU itself does not have a unified attitude towards this matter and will never have one,” the government stated.

When asked whether the Resolution can be viewed a message that the recognition of Kosovo's independence will be a condition for Serbia's further European integration, the daily's source replied that “messages and possibilities for this type of conditioning should be regarded primarily in the context of statements by the governments of EU member states, since the EP alone cannot set such conditions.”

The EP foreign Policy Committee adopted the Resolution on Wednesday, in which it recommended that the EU member countries which have not recognised Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence do so.

WARLICK-USA-SERBIA

US:Recognition of Kosovo is not condition for EU integration

BELGRADE, June 25 (Tanjug) - U.S. Ambassador to Serbia Mary Warlick has stated that the U.S. do not expect from Serbia to recognize the independence of Kosovo, adding that this is not a precondition for good relations between the two countries and for Washington's support to Serbia's EU integration.

However, we want for Serbia to constructively cooperate with Pristina, the U.S., EU and other crucial international factors and to find pragmatic solutions which will improve the life of all people in Kosovo - both Serbs and Albanians, Warlick said in an interview for the Belgrade-based daily Vecernje Novosti.

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