Croatian President Ivo Josipovic said that a meeting with his Serbian counterpart Tomislav Nikolic at this time would not be purposeful, Serbian broadcaster B92 reported on Thursday.
B92 was announcing an exclusive interview with Croatia's president to be televised on Friday and released parts of the interview in which Josipovic commented on a possible meeting with Nikolic and said that the "level of consensus" that the two presidents could reach would be questionable.
"Our meetings, regardless of who they involve, in this case President Nikolic, who was lawfully elected and whom we respect and value in Croatia as the elected president of Serbia has expressed some views from which it is difficult to expect that this symbolic gesture could be achieved either in Croatia or Serbia". The question is whether our meeting would result in a degree of political consensus that is required for our meeting to fulfill its function, Josipovic told B92.
At the same time, Josipovic said that Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic's recent statements were "a good sign of progress between the two countries". "I believe that it is obvious to everyone that good relations are vital for Croatia and Serbia", Josipovic said.
"The ICTY's acquittal of Croatia's generals Gotovina and Markac does not diminish the need for Croatia to prosecute war criminals", President Josipovic said in his interview with B92 which will be televised on Friday at 7 PM after the evening news.
