CROATIA: Serbia's political crisis cast shadow over meeting of Balkan and EU leaders in Zagreb

Balkan and European leaders host a summit in Croatia aimed at boosting cooperation in the region. However, the political crisis in Serbia takes centre stage during summit discussions. Serbia's political crisis cast a long shadow on Friday (May 11) over a regional meeting of Balkan and European Union leaders, who urged the biggest former Yugoslav republic to quickly form a democratic government. The Zagreb Summit, attended by Balkan leaders and senior EU officials such as German Chancellor Angela Merkel, was meant to boost cooperation in the region, most of which is still outside the wealthy bloc. But a shift to hardline nationalism in Serbia and continuing tensions around its independence-bound Kosovo province showed that many Balkan states, which had been at war little more than a decade ago, still had more pressing priorities. "I want to send a special message to Serbia, a country that at this very moment is facing crucial choices for its future," European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said. In remarks meant specifically for Serbia and not contained in his pre-written speech, Barroso said: "It is up to the Serbian leaders and Serb people to decide if they want to go back to the nationalist and isolationist past or to the European and prosperous future. We are offering Serbia a future of stability, economic and social progress in the European Union if Serbia has the courage to take the decisions that will confirm in all aspects this European orientation." In Serbia, Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica and President Boris Tadic were close to agreeing a coalition deal on Friday (May 11) after more than three months of haggling, made worse by this week's election of a hardline nationalist leader as parliament speaker. German Chancellor Angela Merkel hailed progress towards the formation of a pro-European government. In her opening speech she said she hoped Serbia's talks on associate membership could resume soon but said the new government would have to cooperate with the U.N. war crimes tribunal. "I hope that the negotiations on stabilisation and accession with Serbia could soon be continued. This will be possible if the new Serbian government will be working with the international tribunal." Failure to form a government by May 14 would mean calling fresh elections, which the West hopes can be avoided, particularly as it may coincide with the traumatic loss of Kosovo, whose Albanian majority expects to win independence by the summer with Western backing. "We are doing our best and hope Serbia forms a government which will stand for democracy and have a European outlook which it will also be able to implement in practice. And I truly hope this can be done," Merkel said.

ITN Source | May 12, 2007

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