19 July 2004

Jaap de Hoop Scheffer in Serbia and Montenegro News 16/07/2004 - NATO NATO Secretary General to visit Serbia and Montenegro on Monday, 19 July 2004 Background Partnership for Peace The NATO Secretary General travelled to Belgrade on 19 July to meet high-level government officials and discuss relations between Serbia and Montenegro and the Alliance. Mr Jaap de Hoop Scheffer met the President of Serbia and Montenegro, Svetozar Maroviæ, the President of Montenegro, Filip Vujanoviæ, the Prime Minister of Serbia, Vojislav Kostonica, and respectively the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Defence of Serbia and Montenegro, Vuk Draskoviæ and Prvoslav Daviniæ. They discussed defence reform and the positive pace of progress made so far in this area, as well as the country’s conditions of membership of NATO’s Partnership for Peace programme. The Secretary General stressed that Serbia and Montenegro has yet to improve its cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia by helping with the arrest of war crime indictees. It also needs to drop charges against eight NATO member countries for genocide that are pending with the International Court of Justice before membership can be considered. The Secretary General also underlined the need for improved relations between Belgrade and Pristina on the future status of the province of Kosovo. He stated that Serbia and Montenegro must continue its efforts in dismantling the parallel structures put into place and that constructive dialogue and joint institutions must be engaged. During his visit, Mr Jaap de Hoop Scheffer also addressed audiences from the Diplomatic Academy, the Military Academy, the Faculty of Political Science, the Defence College and a non-governmental organisation, the Youth Atlantic Council of Serbia and Montenegro.