Serbia believes it has much to do with Turkey in Balkans

 Earlier this month, Davutoğlu also paid consecutive visits to Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina, reflecting Turkey's intense interest in the region, an interest that is being further cemented by Ankara's ongoing chairmanship-in-office of the South East European Cooperation Process (SEECP).

 According to Curgus, Serbia, which hopes to become a European Union candidate soon, has a special place in the Balkans; likewise, Turkey has a special place in its region, being located where the two continents that form the Old World -- Asia and Europe -- meet.

 “Our political relations are very good; both countries are in special places, and Turkey is our nearby neighbor. So Turkey is not only the biggest country in the region, but is also a very important country for us to work with. We believe that we can do much more together for the western Balkans, for the stability of the region and, of course, particularly for integration into the EU. Both countries, all of the Balkans, want that,” Curgus said in an interview with Sunday's Zaman.

 When reminded that relations between Turkey and Serbia were strained when Turkey became one of the first countries to recognize Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in February 2008, Curgus said he would not like to call that situation a crisis.

 “It was instead a situation in which the two countries had different thoughts, and now we have conveyed the question to the court in The Hague, and we prefer to wait for their answer instead of wasting time in our bilateral relations by discussing this issue,” the ambassador added, in an apparent reference to the fact that Serbia brought the case to the United Nations' International Court of Justice in The Hague, insisting that the unilateral declaration of Kosovo's independence by the provisional government of the province should be recognized as running contrary to the norms of international law.

Prejudices and virtue of discussion

 Despite voicing satisfaction over the quality of political relations, Curgus was not able to reflect the same level of satisfaction regarding bilateral economic relations between the two countries.

 “We need some more -- and more effective -- bilateral cooperation in the economic sphere. Economically, our relations are unsatisfactory for both sides, to be honest. In the past, there were some prejudices, but now we have put aside those prejudices with hard work in all fields,” the plainspoken ambassador said, probably referring to prejudices that have remained from the painful memories of the 1992-95 Bosnian War.

    “When you understand each other, prejudices go away. This moment is a moment when both countries have a lot of initiatives in the Balkans, first of all in Bosnia and Herzegovina,” Curgus continued, recalling a recent trilateral meeting of the foreign ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Turkey hosted in İstanbul by Foreign Minister Davutoğlu.

 On the sidelines of a ministerial-level meeting of the SEECP, Davutoğlu brought together Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic and his Bosnian counterpart, Sven Alkalaj.

 “In light of the pain experienced in the region in the '90s, this meeting is very important for the Balkans. The interpretations and common plans of Turkey, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina on the problems of the region are very important for the stability and future of the Balkans,” Davutoğlu said at the time.

 Davutoğlu also underlined that Turkey will continue in its efforts to develop relations between Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, saying, “We will discuss what we can do to provide an atmosphere for the peaceful coexistence of different religions along with the entrenchment of peace and tolerance in our region.”

 The meeting has been considered a significant step to ease the historic tension between the two countries, which reached its peak in the 1990s when a bloody war broke out between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, which was pursuing ultranationalist policies against Bosnian Muslims. The war, which lasted for more than three years, left 312,000 dead, of which nearly 200,000 were Muslims, according to data provided by the International Red Cross. Another 2 million were made refugees and fled the country.

 “We had a very significant and difficult experience in the past. I hope this experience taught us all that the only way to resolve problems is discussion, and the discussion in İstanbul was a very good one. At the meeting, the three also decided to work together much harder at the highest level in the future to find a solution that will be acceptable for all in Bosnia and Herzegovina,” Curgus said, referring to the ongoing international efforts to help Bosnian leaders find a compromise on constitutional reforms that could bring Bosnia closer to EU membership.

 “We want to help Bosnia and Herzegovina in order to pave the way for their integration into the EU. We believe that it is possible,” he added.

 Revamping the constitution -- hastily created during the 1995 peace talks that ended Bosnia's 1992-95 war -- is considered essential if the country is to fulfill its ambition of joining the EU. However, the country's three sides -- Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims), Croats and Serbs -- have opposing views on how this should be done, and none were happy with a draft proposal circulated by European and US mediators earlier this week.

Situation resembling 1995

“Unfortunately, many years after that agreement [the 1995 Dayton peace accords], the Bosnian leaders are still in the same position. Dayton had two main purposes; the first was to stop the war, and the second was to reach a new agreement among all segments, leading to a country which can one day become a part of Europe. More than 10 years later, we are in a position in which the main player is again the international community which demands changes be made to Dayton. When I look at the situation, I see that something is not good; something is wrong,” Curgus said, when reminded of the recent course of affairs in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

 “They must find a solution for the nations. Only compromise between the nations in Bosnia can create the possibility of a bright future for all of them. We are working on that. We believe that any change in Dayton can come only from the three nations in Bosnia. It must be acceptable for the three nations. We don't have a situation where the three nations sit and talk. and there are many reasons for that. We support every decision by the three nations in Bosnia if they come out of a compromise because our experience tells us that this is the only way for a fast and successful move to the EU.”

 “Bosniaks have historical links with Turkey, and Serbians have links with Serbia; these two countries should exert efforts to find a solution. We should do our best to help, but we don't have the right to be involved in it. You must give the people inside the country a chance to speak with each other.”