The fifth session of the Foreign Affairs Committee was held on 18 May 2004, and was chaired by the Committee’s chairperson, Gordana Comic.

The Committee’s session was attended by Ninoslav Randjelovic, independent film producer and author of documentaries on the plight of the Serb population in Kosovo and Metohia. Mr Randjelovic informed members of the Committee of the manner in which the media presented the humanitarian catastrophe in Kosovo and Metohia.

The Committee resolved to ask the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia and Montenegro, and the Ministry of the Diaspora in order to secure financial backing for the project. The Coordination Centre for Kosovo and Metohia will also be asked to forward footage filmed by Mr Randjelovic, to be used for a multimedia presentation on the official web site of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia. It was also resolved to arrange a presentation of the films for members of the diplomatic corps, as well as for national and international media.

The session also saw the discussion and adoption of the Committee’s project proposal for applying for funding from the OSCE Committee Development Fund. The project envisages bilateral and multilateral co-operation with parliaments of Balkan countries, as well as a regional roundtable focusing on cross-border co-operation.

The Committee’s chairperson, Gordana Comic, informed the members on the participation of the Assembly’s representatives at the Vienna Seminar, organised from 12 to 16 April 2004 by the IMF’s International Relations Department.

Members of the Committee were also informed on official trips to foreign countries made by deputies to the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia.