The major partner in the ruling coalition in Serbia, the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), will recommend to the Serbian government not to sign an agreement on Kosovo but to urgently request the continuation of dialogue as the proposed agreement does not offer even a minimum level of national interest, SNS leader and Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic told the press on Monday.
Before the day's end and not Tuesday, as announced previously, Belgrade is expected to decide whether it accepts the agreement on the status of the community of Serb municipalities in Kosovo and to inform Brussels of its decision and it is expected that the government will make its decision by midday.
The SNS met early on Monday morning after several meetings held on Sunday by the country's president and prime minister to conduct consultations regarding the proposed solution for northern Kosovo.
According to Vucic, Serbia has not received any clear responses to a series of requests nor is it entirely clear what Serbia was expected to accept.
"Belgrade has not been given an answer to the question of the presence of security forces, nor any clear response to the question of education, health and the judiciary", Vucic said, adding that Belgrade was also seeking to have an appeals court in Kosovska Mitrovica.
He added that the SNS hoped for the continuation of dialogue and that he did not expect a negative response from Brussels, Washington or Berlin if the agreement was not signed on Tuesday but that further dialogue would be welcomed.
Earlier on Sunday, President Tomislav Nikolic and Prime Minister Ivica Dacic held separate press conferences and told the press that the country's top officials and government would decide in the best interest of the Serbian people and that they would request the continuation of dialogue as all negotiations until now implied Kosovo's independence.
