Starovic: Gov't wants Serbia to progress towards EU membership

BELGRADE - During a parliamentary debate on an opposition no-confidence motion for the Serbian government, Minister of European Integration Nemanja Starovic said on Tuesday the cabinet had demonstrated political will and a desire for the country to make progress on the EU membership path.

"Yes, this Government of Serbia wants that, and this Government of Serbia, alongside other state institutions, has demonstrated that it can achieve that. In that sense, the ball is completely in someone else's court now," Starovic said in response to criticism from Movement of Free Citizens MP Pavle Grbovic, who made a claim that, under the present government, Serbia was farther from EU membership than it had ever been before.

Speaking about the work of the government and state institutions on EU integration, the minister said the government's political conscience was completely clear.

"It is clear because, at the beginning of this month, we received a sixth European Commission recommendation for opening Cluster 3," Starovic said, noting that Serbia remained committed to reform processes and that the government would also work hard in the future to implement a reform agenda.