Jeremic says Serbia does not expect SAA to be implemented soon

VIENNA, Austria – Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said on Monday (March 30th) he does not expect his country’s Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the EU to be implemented any time soon. It hinges on arresting war crimes fugitive Ratko Mladic.

At a meeting with Austrian counterpart Michael Spindelegger in Vienna, Jeremic said Serbia’s EU integration faces considerable resistance, adding it will be neither quick nor easy.

In turn, Spindelegger described Austria as one of Serbia’s main allies in the EU and vowed to continue to work to speed up the integration of the Western Balkans. He also said Austria is determined to resist EU enlargement “fatigue”.

Meanwhile, Germany’s Federal Intelligence Agency said in a report Monday that there is no chance of a Mladic arrest this year, despite what Serbia’s war crimes prosecutor, Vladimir Vukcevic, says. He recently predicted police would capture Mladic “by the end of this year at the latest”.