"EU should openly say what it wants from us"

(Tanjug, file)

"EU should openly say what it wants from us"

BELGRADE -- The European Union is "not yet sure what to do with itself, or what it would do with us," Serbia's Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic has been quoted as saying.

In an interview for the Belgrade-based newspaper Danas, he stated that the EU should "clearly say what it wants from Serbia."

He advised his recent statement that Serbia would not be able to join the organization "even if it recognized Kosovo" to be interpreted "in this context."

"I think it's been clear to everyone for a long time that I'm not one of those politicians who talk randomly, or one whose reactions are hysterical or panicky. In other words, when I say something, I know why I say it and what I'm saying. So is the case with this statement. It represents a response, not my own, but of Serbia as a state to the fact that we have been exposed to various conditions and announcements of conditions. It sends a clear message that we have had enough of that. It says: please, gentlemen, say openly what you want from Serbia, so that we can equally openly say whether we want to do what is required of us," Dacic told the paper, and added:

"This way, we are in a position to accept or reject something that nobody is officially demanding from us. To us that means nothing but a sign that even what I mentioned could happen to us. For us to hurtle to recognize Kosovo, convinced that it is a requirement, and then for somebody to tell us, sorry, but something else was the condition."

Asked "whether this means that the EU does not want us," Dacic "gave a negative answer," said the daily.

"This means that the EU is still not even sure what to do either with itself, nor with us. And when this is considered, we...

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