EU could resume talks with Serbia

EU negotiations with Serbia could be resumed next week and a Stabilisation and Association Agreement, a stepping stone to EU membership, could be concluded by the end of the year, according to diplomats.

The talks have been suspended since May 2006 over Serbia’s failure to capture General Radko Mladic, who is wanted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague on charges of genocide.

But fears that Serbia was turning away from the EU prompted the Union to drop its demand that Mladic be delivered to The Hague before talks begin. Although parallel talks on the independence of Kosovo, currently a Serbian province, have the potential further to alienate Serbia and prompt instability in the Balkans, the EU is expected to sweeten its tone towards Belgrade.

The capture of Zdravko Tolimir, a Bosnian-Serb officer who was a close ally of Mladic, allowed the EU to deliver a more upbeat assessment of Serbia’s co-operation with the tribunal.

The EU now says that Mladic’s capture is only necessary before an agreement is signed.

According to diplomats, talks could resume at a technical level on 14-15 June and in July for formal political talks, if Carla del Ponte, the United Nations’ chief war crimes prosecutor, gives a positive assessment of Serbia’s co-operation with the court.

After del Ponte’s talks with Serbian security officials on Wednesday (6 June), diplomats said that her analysis would be positive.

"There are now new structures in place for the intelligence services. The assessment will be positive," said one Serbian diplomat.

A new Serbian government was formed on 15 May which put pro-EU President Boris Tadic in charge of a national security council.

On 18 June, EU foreign ministers meeting in Luxembourg are expected to endorse formally the resumption of talks.

Officials said that a final agreement could be informally completed by September, allowing it to be formally concluded in December, so long as Mladic is caught beforehand.

Speaking in Belgrade, del Ponte said: "We have had some concrete signs of good co-operation, I hope in a few weeks we will see full co-operation."

EU negotiations with Serbia could be resumed next week and a Stabilisation and Association Agreement, a stepping stone to EU membership, could be concluded by the end of the year, according to diplomats.