|  The Hungarian foreign minister said the gas crisis in January had proven how mutually dependent Hungary and Serbia are, and she underlined the importance of regional solidarity. Kinga Göncz discussed the matter with her Serbian counterpart Vuk Jeremic when they met in Budapest on Monday. The two countries are major partners, and that they have exceptionally close ties. The most important area of relations is the economy, Ms Göncz pointed out, adding that co-operation would be lifted considerably if Hungarian Airlines, MALÉV could renew its direct flights to Belgrade.
Ms Göncz emphasised that Hungary supports Serbia’s Euro-Atlantic integration. One of the topics discussed was precisely how the accession process could be accelerated; Hungary has again offered its assistance in this regard. The two foreign ministers discussed the situation of the Hungarian community in Vojvodina, which numbers 300,000. Ms Göncz said that it would be beneficial for the Hungarian minority there if the EU granted a visa waiver for Serbia as soon as possible – she herself saw a chance of this happening before the end of the year. Mr Jeremic also described relations between the two states as outstanding. He thanked Hungary for its support, especially for the natural gas deliveries during the January energy crisis.  At a press conference following the meeting, the ministers signed a co-operation agreement between the two foreign ministries.
Mr Jeremic told reporters that Serbia stood ready to receive a delegation from the International Criminal Tribunal, which investigates war crimes in the former Yugoslavia. He said the delegation could see for itself that Serbia is doing everything possible to find the war criminals. The stabbing in Veszprém over the weekend was also addressed at the press conference. Ms Göncz said that this was the first topic at their talks, as the incident –which led to the death of one sportsman and serious injuries of two others – had shocked everyone. She took the opportunity to express her condolences to the victims and their families. She added that the Hungarian side stands ready to offer help to the respective countries in connection with the death of the handball player, Marian Cozma, a Romanian national and the two seriously injured, one Croat and one Serbian. Minister Jeremic called the Veszprém tragedy a very regrettable event, but – as he put it – he would not comment any further, since it was the task of the police to investigate what happened and the conclusion of the investigation was awaited. He ruled out the possibility of any Serbian paramilitary units arriving in Hungary to seek revenge. He said no such groups existed in Serbia and nor would they in future. On the subject of economic co-operation, the Serbian foreign minister told the journalists that the main focus was energy, but they also reviewed the possibilities of expanding border crossings and opening new border points. Ms Göncz said that this latter issue was now in the hands of experts, as agreed upon by the two parties during her visit to Belgrade last September. A journalist suggested that before its accession to the EU, Serbia should clarify its role in the 1944 anti-Hungarian massacre. Mr Jeremic replied that there had been many crimes committed over the course of history and that it is now time to look to the future. The Serbian government however is ready to discuss this issue. Ms Göncz went further saying that the criteria of European Union accession are clear and it is not desirable to expand on them. However, in order to grapple with the past, it is necessary to talk about everything that could put a strain on bilateral relations. She noted that Hungary had already faced its own role in the Voivodina bloodshed of 1942, and apologised for what happened. Ms Göncz on the other hand greeted Serbia’s openness on the subject and said that the circumstances of the 1944 anti-Hungarian retaliation should be viewed in the context of extremely good bilateral relations. (February 9, 2009) |