From RFE/RL:
SERBIA'S PRESIDENT CALLS FOR REALISM (((Wow!)))
By Patrick Moore
Serbian President Boris Tadic told RFE/RL's South Slavic and Albanian Languages Service in Belgrade recently that his country must observe its international obligations and meet the expectations of the most developed countries if it wants to escape its chronic poverty and improve its standard of living.
(((Yes, even in Serbia, politicians can talk
perfect sense to the international press!)))
He added that this in no way means that Serbs must renounce their traditions or national goals.
((("Global," "local".... No, we're Glocal here! We're Lobal!
Come fly right over, and bring some investment money!)))
Tadic argued that the government must cooperate with the
Hague-based war crimes tribunal because Serbia's own laws oblige it to do so. "This country has a law stating that all who have been indicted for war crimes by The Hague tribunal must be arrested and extradited" to that body, he noted.
((("Not that the local armed hejduks would bother to obey
our own Serbian laws any more than they obey anybody
else's!")))
Moreover, it is in Serbia's own interest to do so.
"Non-cooperation with The Hague tribunal will hold us up from
achieving [international] integration for political and security
purposes as well as the economic development of our society. Without economic development and without political and security integration, we cannot resolve the problem of Kosovo and Metohija, or that of [the joint state of] Serbia and Montenegro, or any other vital question
facing our country.... That is the point," he stressed.
(((Most everybody says this stuff, and pretty much
nothing happens. The locals would rather
donate their own kidneys to UNESCO than give
up Mladic and Karadzic to The Hague.)))
In a similar vein, Tadic argued that Serbia's pursuit of EU
membership is aimed at achieving concrete goals, namely economic benefits and a standard of living "similar to that of the most developed countries.... And until we gain EU membership...we must work toward that goal."
(((You know what? It's hard to believe, given
its ubiquity in every major polity today, but just maybe,
in the long run, Crime Doesn't Pay!)))
He noted, moreover, that there is no alternative to joining
the EU. Tadic warned that those Serbian politicians who say that
Serbia does not need EU membership are seeking to manipulate
uninformed voters. He added that there is no political future for
such anti-EU doctrines. Tadic also stressed that some EU states have ethnic and human rights problems similar to Serbia's and pointed out that these issues are more easily dealt with once a country is inside the EU and has achieved a certain level of prosperity. ((("Pay us first, then we'll turn honest! No, really, we're all completely sincere about that!")))
Referring to the joint state with Montenegro, which was set up in 2002-03 under strong EU pressure, (((another golden achievement of farsighted European diplomacy))) Tadic said that Montenegro's "demand for a redefinition of relations [between the two republics] is fully legitimate." On the other hand, he added, each state has its own interests to pursue, and Serbia's interest lies in European integration. To that end, Serbs – and Montenegrins – should respect the EU's wishes that the joint state be preserved as the best vehicle for achieving European integration. "Montenegro will not be able to
become a member of the EU ahead of Serbia [as some of its
pro-independence leaders suggest], because that is a matter for the EU to decide," and Brussels' position is clear.
(((Montenegro has fewer than a million people in it.
For the price of a week occupying Iraq, the USA could buy
a Cadillac for everyt Montenegrin who can drive!)))
Turning to Serbia's relations with the United States during
the second administration of President George W. Bush, Tadic charged that it is a "tragic fact" that most Serbian "politicians, citizens, and even experts" do not have a good understanding of the United States, its institutions, or its decision-making processes. (((No problem, Mr President! Believe me, us Americans don't understand those things either!)))
He stressed that Serbia cannot expect any special treatment from Washington. This, Tadic argued, is because "America does not retreat from its demands or principles, and that means cooperation with The Hague tribunal and observing international standards...which are European standards and part of the Western civilization in which we live because we want to share in the economic benefits of that civilization."
(((It's so sane and sensible that it makes you want to cry!)))
Tadic noted that many of Serbia's difficulties in reaching
its goals are of its own making. (((Why can't we all admit this?))) "Many people involved in politics in Serbia...demonstrate on a daily basis that they understand absolutely nothing about how the modern world functions." Furthermore, he called
his countrymen's attention to the progress that Croatia has made in recent years in breaking with its own nationalist past, a development that he "greatly respects." (((Yeah, and if you really want to get the goat of local voters, you can compare their situation to the lush, golden situation of the Slovenians, who are the former Yugoslav republic most likely to be mistaken for Luxembourg.)))
He argued that all the former Yugoslav
republics can improve their economies and standards of living by working together more closely. (((It's the Great Balkan Square Dance... a kind of slow-motion pulsation of bloodshed, bankrupty and then tender reconciliation.)))
But what about Serbia's own specific traditions and political goals? (((Yeah – what ARE those, exactly?))) Tadic noted that he himself has no difficulty in reconciling
his Western political orientation with his cultural roots in the East and his Serbian Orthodox faith. He pointed out that Greece has long been a member of the EU and obtained more than $130 billion in economic assistance from Brussels over the years while preserving its strong national and religious identity.
(((Hey wait! That's right! Those Greeks are as stubborn
and obstreperous as any Serb could possibly want to be!
Look at the way the Greeks have senselessly tormented
Cyprus, Macedonia and Turkey for decades on end!)))
Turning to Kosovo, Tadic said that Serbs are deluding
themselves if they think the clock can be turned back to the years before 1999. (((Oh come on! We ALL want to go back there before 1999! We were having FUN then!)))
At the same time, he stressed that "Kosovo must not become independent" because that would "destabilize one part of the
Balkans and Southeastern Europe on a long-term basis." The Serbian president argued that the only solution for the province is through European integration, which "is not an empty phrase" but the only serious option for the future.
(((Well... okay.... that was really interesting.... and today I'm going out for a Beograd stroll with my camera to harvest a few facts on the ground. Stay tuned, viewers.)))
