Trade ministers, Rasim Ljajic of Serbia and Mirko Sarovic of Bosnia and Herzegovina said in Belgrade on Monday that the European Union's proposal to amend Stabilisation and Association Agreements (SAA) because of Croatia's admission to the EU and its automatic departure from the Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA) was unacceptable to their respective countries.
Ljajic and Sarovic met in Belgrade to discuss a joint position of their countries on suggestions from Brussels to modify their respective SAAs after Croatia's EU admission on 1 July, according to a press release issued by the office of Minister Ljajic.
Serbia does not accept to retain the preferential duty on imported cigarettes from Croatia, which also refers to a number of imported products from Croatia into Bosnia and Herzegovina, reads the press release.
The Serbian and Bosnian ministers agreed to coordinate their viewpoints when it is necessary to protect economic interests of their countries in relations with the EU.
Ljajic was quoted by the Belgrade media on Saturday as saying that Serbia was under pressure from the EU to solve the issue of imported Croatian cigarettes.
The local media speculate that Brussels wants Serbia to retain 15% tariff rate on 1,625 tonnes of cigarettes imported from Croatia, as this rate is in place for countries covered by CEFTA, while the imported EU cigarettes are subject to the custom tariff of 57% in Serbia.
