Serbian Defense Minister Dragan Sutanovac said, following his visit to the NATO summit, that Serbia wants to strengthen its military ties with NATO.

“The next step in the relations with NATO is strengthening Serbia’s position in the Partnership for Peace program, as well as advancing the cooperation with the EU through the Union’s common defense policy and participation in EU peacekeeping missions,” Sutanovac said.

The heads of state and government of NATO member countries welcomed at the Summit in Lisbon Serbia’s commitment to Euro-Atlantic integration and the increasing cooperation between the Alliance and Serbia.

“We welcome, and continue to support, the Government of Serbia’s stated commitment to Serbia’s Euro-Atlantic integration. We welcome the increasing cooperation between NATO and Serbia. We reiterate our openness to Serbia’s further aspirations, including taking advantage of NATO’s partnership opportunities for political consultation and practical cooperation,” reads the Summit Declaration.

NATO urged on Serbia to help consolidate “peace and stability in Kosovo” but remained unclear whether that means that Serbia must recognize Kosovo.

NATO’s Declaration welcomes the progress made by the Kosovo Security Force, Albanian military units commanded by ethnic Albanian ethnic cleansers.

Serbia’s President Tadic said that his government will never recognize Kosovo.

Croatia’s President Ivo Josipovic said at the NATO Summit in Lisbon that he would welcome Serbia’s NATO accession, because its membership in the military alliance would contribute to the stability of the whole region.

“Serbia needs to find its own path and make its own decision. But as far as Croatia is concerned, Serbia is welcome in NATO,” Josipovic said.

“Croatia also supports the NATO accession of Bosnia-Herzegovina, and wants to see the dispute over the name of Macedonia settled as soon as possible so that country can join NATO as well,” Josipovic said.

Sutanovac also said that NATO said that reforms carried out in the Serbian security system have been “acknowledged and accepted on both sides.”

Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Ivica Dacic said that the security situation in Serbia is stable, despite some risks related primarily to the security and political situation in Kosovo.

“We are prepared to do everything to preserve the safety of our citizens, public order and the country’s territorial integrity,” he said.

The minister added that the Interior Ministry carried out a series of drug seizures and that this year; 100 kilograms of heroin were confiscated in the biggest seizure in recent history.

“Operation Morava, whose aim is to neutralize the trafficking network, is still underway. So far, around 2,000 people have been arrested and charged,” he said.

November 23, 2010
Tanjug
SERBIANNA

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