euro|topics - Serb government collapses over Kosovo

05/07/2009

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Main focus of Monday, March 10, 2008

Serb government collapses over Kosovo

Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica has resigned. The government and parliament were deeply divided over the issue of Kosovo's declaration of independence and relations with the EU. New elections are to be called for 11 May. Is Serbia now in danger of becoming even more isolated?

Delo - Slovenia

Following Kosovo's independence, the fall of the Kostunica government is the first good news in a long time for many people in Serbia and abroad, Peter Potocnik writes. "It's surprising that the Serb Prime Minister, who ruled without the support of the voters, was the one to propose the dissolution of parliament and early elections to Serb President Boris Tadic. ... Although the elections are tantamount to a referendum on the EU, they won't provide a long-term solution. ... The election campaign, which basically begins now, will be a decisive phase for those who want a pro-European Serbia." (10/03/2008)

Berliner Zeitung - Germany

"If the obstructionist policies of the nationalists succeed in the parliamentary elections, it will be a defeat and damaging for Serbia," Frank Herold writes. "They are already having an impact on the economy. Hundreds of millions of euros in foreign investments have already been withdrawn, and as a result inflation and unemployment are on the rise. If things go on like this, the national bank warns, there will be social protest in two to three months - precisely when the elections are due to take place. But in the end, a victory for the radicals would also mean a temporary defeat for the European Union. In no country of the west Balkans has the EU invested so much political energy, and no other country in the region has received as much aid and investment as Serbia over the past few years. A victory for the nationalists would show to what extent the 'European project' has lost its appeal." (10/03/2008)

Der Standard - Austria

"The Serb government hasn't survived Kosovo's independence," Andrej Ivanji writes. He doubts whether the pro-Western contingent will be successful in the elections. "President Boris Tadic's advisers are mainly excellent marketing experts, but whether they will be able to turn the tables in Tadic's favour in the election campaign is questionable. So far Tadic has played along with deep conviction in the patriotic game about preserving Kosovo. Now he will have to resort to radical populist measures and somehow convince voters that Serbia's joining the EU would not be tantamount to a tacit recognition of Kosovo's independence." (10/03/2008)

ABC - Spain

The Spanish daily recalls the fact that, in February, "The Serbian presidential election had shown the country was torn between two irreconcilable choices: on the one hand, partisans of the European path, who considered this option could get them out of the nightmare which post-communist nationalism had got them into, on the other hand, those still suffering from the wounds that were precisely considered to have been caused by Europe and who sought protection from Russia. ... Following the trauma of the declaration of Kosovo's independence, it is likely that the division will be accentuated. ... Early legislative elections may lead to a situation still worse and more unstable than prior to the dissolution. The EU should renew its offer of an adequate status within it for Serbia, because this would be the only reasonable solution for all concerned." (10/03/2008)

» To the complete press review of Monday, March 10, 2008

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