The Committee Chairperson spoke of the role of the National Assembly, European Integration Committee and relevant assembly committees in the process of reviewing negotiating positions, excellently defined in the Resolution and Committee’s Decision on the implementation of the Resolution on the role of the National Assembly in the process of negotiations between Serbia and the European Union, the established consultative mechanism with the working groups of the National Convention on the EU and civil society organisations, and added that parliamentary diplomacy always leaves room for more intensive and comprehensive cooperation. She stressed that the Republic of Serbia belongs in the family of European peoples which is its natural environment.

Davenport said that both sides endorse the same policy – Serbia’s EU accession, and emphasised the role of the Parliament and the European Integration Committee in the process. Davenport also added that the EU Delegation to Serbia is open to all questions and underlined the importance of constant communication for the continued negotiations. “The opening of new chapters gave new impulse to Serbia’s Euro-integration and we now have room to enter into the details of these chapters”, said the Ambassador.

The officials also said that the implementation of the Action Plan often means not just the application of the existing, but also the adoption of new laws, and the opening of new chapters is not just a technical challenge, but also a challenge of harmonisation of the political positions of all the EU member states.

Davenport said that the European Commission’s Annual Progress Report on Serbia is expected in late October and the Delegation has collected the comments of the Government, EU member states and NGOs, adding that though the Report will be concrete and have a positive tone, it will also contain constructive criticism where called for. He expects the Report will contain a number of concrete recommendations concerning political issues and directions certain Serbian policies should follow in the Euro-integration process.

Tepic listed the future activities of the European Integration Committee and its coming meetings. The Committee Chairperson said that regional cooperation is one of the chief tasks the Committee is to tackle and announced bilateral meetings with the relevant committees of the countries in the region. She said she was sure that the verbal tensions between the Republic of Croatia and the Republic of Serbia would die down and stressed that the peace, security, stability and development of the region can be preserved and built only if we work together. She reminded that the first cooperation between Serbia and Croatia, after the conflicts of the 1990s, originated between AP Vojvodina and the County of Istria at the initiative of the Assembly of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, and said she was pleased by the very active and comprehensive cross-border cooperation between the two countries.