EU signs preliminary deal with Serbia

Serbia yesterday made its first move, albeit symbolic, towards EU membership when it signed a stabilisation and association accord (SAA) with the EU.

The signing ceremony took place in Luxembourg on the fringes of the EU Foreign Ministers' monthly meeting.

Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel, whose country holds the EU's rotating Presidency, signed the text with Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Jelic and European Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn.

The agreement was also signed by all EU Foreign Ministers including Tonio Borg.

During talks prior to the signing, Belgium and the Netherlands insisted that Belgrade had to first fully cooperate with the UN war crimes court by handing over remaining suspects, chief among them former Bosnian Serb army chief Ratko Mladic.

It was agreed that the SAA would not be ratified by the 27 member states, and therefore would not enter into force, until Belgrade cooperates sufficiently with the UN war crimes court.

Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said the signing marked "a historical day for Serbia and for the EU". He would not accept that the accord with the EU was purely symbolic.

EU member states agreed to sign the agreement in order to boost Serbia's pro-European parties ahead of a general election on May 11. Serbian nationalists were incensed by the fact that most EU member states have swiftly recognised the February declaration of independence of the breakaway Serb province of Kosovo. Malta, along with a few other EU member states, has not yet recognised Kosovo.