Dr Dejan Popović
Ambassador of the Republic of Serbia
Europe House, London, 15 June 2011

REGIONAL COOPERATION:
THE BEST TOOL FOR OVERCOMING THE PAST AND CREATING A BETTER FUTURE

It is my intention to address the issue of the regional cooperation in South-East Europe in the light of its potential in terms of overcoming the burdens inherited from the past and of creating a better future for the Balkans people within the wide constellation of nations that have created the European Union. From the outset of my presentation I would like to underline my deep conviction that reconciliation – as the ultimate outcome of the activation of the above-mentioned potential of regional cooperation whenever a conflict was involved, should be perceived as a benefit per se – a revelation of intrinsic human values that so often used to be hidden below the surface of a humdrum existence. Having said this, I do not forget a warning expressed by the French philosopher Jean Baudrillard that "the world is not dialectical – it is sworn to extremes, not to equilibrium, sworn to radical antagonism, not to reconciliation or synthesis. This is also the principle of evil." To overcome the evil we have to resist the temptation of considering our position as just and the other’s as unjust and we must be determined to bring to justice all the perpetrators of the crimes committed against our neighbours or ourselves regardless of their ethnicity, while being aware of the words attributed to the British writer Charles Williams: "Many promising reconciliations have broken down because while both parties come prepared to forgive, neither party come prepared to be forgiven". Reconciliation among nations thus requires a certain degree of courage among the decision-makers and recognition of the existence of a partner on the other side who would be willing to accept the extended hand. This brings us back to cooperation.
It is now 11 years since the fall of the Milošević regime in Serbia. The Government established after the elections in 2008 was consistently pursuing these moral postulates, with the regional cooperation being established as its strategic foreign policy priority. The crackdown on those who committed the most serious war crimes during the last decade of the 20th century resulted in 45 out of 46 indictees being arrested and transferred to the Hague Tribunal – two among them are Karadžić, arrested in the first month of the Government’s term, and recently Mladić – both of them indicted for the genocide in Srebrenica and other war crimes. The capture of these fugitives was not just a legal obligation, stipulated by the public international law, but in the first place a moral issue.
The Serbia's War Crimes Prosecutor has carried out inquests against 383 suspects and indicted 142 of them. 67 indictees have been sentenced so far for the war crimes committed in Croatia and Bosnia and in the territory of Kosovo – almost all of them of Serbian origin. 57 indictees are still facing trials in the War Crimes Division of the Belgrade Court. Extensive cooperation has been established with war crimes prosecution offices in Croatia (36 cases), Bosnia-Herzegovina (7 cases), Montenegro (5 cases) and EULEX/UNMIK (17 cases). In addition, the Parliament of Serbia adopted a Resolution strongly condemning the crimes committed against the Bosniak residents of Srebrenica in July 1995, in the way in which it was confirmed by the International Court of Justice’s verdict, as well as offering condolences and apologies to the families of the victims because not enough had been done to prevent the tragedy from occurring. President of Serbia Boris Tadić visited Srebrenica in 2005 and 2010 in order to pay tribute to the victims. Motivated by the same reasons he also visited Vukovar in Croatia in the autumn of 2010, where he laid a wreath on the graves of executed Croat prisoners of war and offered words of apology, while accompanying the President of Croatia Ivo Josipović during his visit to nearby Paulin Dvor aimed at paying respect and expressing apologises to the victims of Serb origin. The words of apologises for the innocent Serb victims have also been recently heard from the newly elected Bosniak member of the Presidency of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bakir Izetbegović. The region's surface has been finally stirred as the positive vibrations are crossing its internal borders.
While we might talk about differences between bigger and smaller crimes, although I personally do not believe in them, because each crime against an innocent human life is heinous, what we certainly cannot talk about are differences between victims. All innocent victims are the same and they all matter. And they should, in my opinion, be the starting point for establishing the truth about the wars, which is the only ground for a better, peaceful tomorrow. I was glad, and relieved, to hear that this view is shared by some 1,500 regional NGOs, who had joined their forces in campaigning for the formation of a regional commission (REKOM) for establishing truth on our recent past. They believe REKOM's first task should be to list the victims, by name, if possible. I am proud to say not only that President Tadić, together with several colleagues, has supported this campaign, but also that over 750,000 people have already signed it in the region. To paraphrase Theodor Adorno, truth consists of fragments which upset those involved and it is not possible to put them together without a sharp and long-lasting pain. I am glad that most political factors in the region realise that the sooner we take this path, the sooner the pain will subside.    
Bringing the perpetrators to justice, and especially the arrest of Mladić and his subsequent transfer to the Hague Tribunal, offer the chance of closure to the families of the victims. And – let me quote Foreign Secretary William Hague and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton – this arrest “offers a vital opportunity to draw a line under the past and to move the entire Western Balkan region decisively towards a better future”. Energetic actions aimed at trying war criminals elsewhere in the region would be highly appreciated not only among the Serbs but also internationally. This particularly refers to the necessity of an imminent, efficient and thorough investigation of the alleged heinous crimes against Serbs in Kosovo, including human organs trafficking, as stated in the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly report. The facts that these crimes were committed 12 or 13 years ago and that, in spite of a substantial international presence in Kosovo, they have not been dealt with so far – not even in the six months that passed since Dick Marty's revelations – cause widely spread concerns. Therefore the investigation should be independent, comprehensive and with clear UN Security Council mandate to be performed in all the countries and territories involved. The supportive role of EULEX is not in question and it is also welcome.
Apart from the intrinsic values of reconciliation, one may however recognize the existence and relevance of its related external effects. Cooperation generally results in the increase of welfare of the nations involved and in our specific Western Balkans circumstances it enhances the perspectives of these countries’ accession to the EU. 
Among the General Principles of the SAA between the EU and Serbia is Serbia's commitment to continue to foster cooperation and good neighbourly relations with the other countries of the region including an appropriate level of mutual concessions concerning the movement of persons, goods, capital and services as well as the development of projects of common interest, notably those related to border management and combating organised crime, corruption, money laundering, illegal migration and trafficking, including in particular the trafficking in human beings, small arms and light weapons, as well as in illicit drugs. This commitment constitutes a key factor in the development of the relations and cooperation between the Parties and thus contributes to regional stability.
Guided by these principles, Serbia takes part in a number of regional initiatives and processes: South East European Cooperation Process, Regional Cooperation Council, Central European Initiative, South East European Cooperation Initiative, Adriatic Ionian Initiative, Danube Cooperation Process, Black Sea Economic Cooperation, etc. We are signatories of some major multilateral regional agreements, including Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA), Energy Community Treaty and European Common Aviation Area. Our cooperation, especially with Croatia, in the fight against organised crime represents the best example of the effects that joined efforts may produce in the region. Another example that must not be omitted when talking about cooperation in the Balkans is the trilateral initiative where Turkey has brought together leaders of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia for talks on the common future.
In discussions on the regional cooperation with my colleagues I am often asked the question: “What about Kosovo?” I will briefly point out that Serbia does not recognise Kosovo Albanians' unilateral declaration of independence and that our Constitution instructs us on the political positioning. It is my understanding that 76 countries have recognised Kosovo, while 116 (or 60% of the total number of UN member states) have not. Among them 5 are EU member states. This consequently means that the EU is not ready to present Serbia with the additional condition of recognising Kosovo's independence. Having said this, I am deeply convinced that Serbs and Albanians must be reconciled. This is possible and we are ready to explore all possibilities. The dialogue between Belgrade and Priština that began in March 2011 under the auspices of the EU is aimed at achieving improvement in the living conditions of common people in Kosovo – Albanians, as well as Serbs. We are encouraged by the progress made in the discussions held in Brussels and Priština. Some may want immediate solutions. That is contrary to political logic. We want solutions that last, that address the legitimate interests of both Serbs and Albanians and that may keep European perspective open for the entire region. The “technical” solutions to be reached hopefully before the summer recess should enhance free movement of persons, goods, capital and services across the line one side calls “administrative border” and the other “state frontier”, without having impact of indirect recognition of Kosovo statehood. These solutions should also include provisions for peaceful and free access for Serbs living in Kosovo to all the parts of its territory.
As the year 2011 slowly enters into its second half, Serbia is stocktaking its achievements in fulfilling the criteria specified in 2010 Commission's Report and finalising the legislative procedure wherever a new law is pending. Strongly committed to finalising the cooperation with the Hague Tribunal (i. e. to locating and arresting the last fugitive Hadžić), Serbia is expecting to be granted the status of candidate country by the end of 2011 and to begin accession talks in 2012. 
The EU perspective is therefore the common denominator for all the countries that belong to the Balkans in a wider sense, with all the ambiguities the notion “Balkans” may contain, so brilliantly explained by the Bulgarian historian Maria Todorova in her “Imagining the Balkans”.