The ruling coalition political parties and officials in Serbia on Wednesday welcomed the European Commission's recommendation that Serbia be awarded European Union candidate status, saying it was a recognition for the reforms undertaken, while the opposition was divided, with some parties partly welcoming the recommendation and others seeing it as a continuation of the Commission's blackmailing of Serbia.
President Boris Tadic said he felt proud that the Commission had assessed as successful the reforms Serbia had carried out, adding that the recommendation that Serbia be granted accession candidate status if Belgrade-Pristina dialogue continued was what Serbia also wanted, that dialogue continue and the problem be solved.
Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration Bozidar Djelic said the positive report and opinion were the result of Serbia's long-standing and committed work on the completion of cooperation with the Hague war crimes tribunal, implementation of reforms and positive contribution to regional security and cooperation.
Djelic said it should be pointed out that, given the currently difficult circumstances because of the crisis in Europe and the unrest in northern Kosovo, this was the best possible outcome for Serbia.
Parliament Speaker Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic assessed the European Commission's recommendation as "excellent news" and that the rest of the opinion was nothing new.
Aleksandar Vucic, vice president of the leading opposition Serbian Progress Party, said that obtaining EU candidate status would not solve the poor state of the economy or the low living standard in Serbia, adding that Serbia needed a new government.
Former PM Vojislav Kostunica's Democratic Party of Serbia accused the government of paying for European integration with territory and that candidacy came with new blackmail and pressure.
Liberal Democratic Party president Cedomir Jovanovic said the Commission's decision was expected but that it should not be interpreted as a success. He added that in order to win candidate status, Serbia must not only align its regulations to European standards but also meet political requirements.
The European Commission has concluded that Serbia is ready for candidate status, the progress report presented today says, adding that the recommendation for launching negotiations on accession will depend on progress in dialogue with Kosovo and normalisation in northern Kosovo.
The recommendation does not mean the automatic granting of candidate status, as member countries have the last word on the matter. They are to take a position at a summit on December 9 and Serbia will be granted the status only if all countries vote for it.
