BELGRADE – Former Members of the European Parliament Eduard Kukan and Knut Fleckenstein met yesterday and today with the representatives of ruling and opposition parties in Serbia behind closed doors, discussing the topics of parliamentary and election boycott. Opposition presented its demands for participating in next year’s election and commended the constructiveness of the meeting.
Kukan and Fleckenstein, former members of European Parliament “Troika” which mediated the process of reaching of and implementing “Pržino” agreement in North Macedonia, leading to a successful 2016 election, also met with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić. No details on the meeting have been published.
Opposition MPs, with whom Kukan and Fleckenstein met yesterday, have mostly commended the meeting and pointed out that former MEPs understand the situation in Serbia.
“I think that they will try to do everything in their power to change the situation in Serbia, so that we can change our positions as well”, said Sanda Rašković Ivić, Vice-President of People’s Party, Tanjug reports.
Member of Parliament for the Democratic Party Balša Božović stated that both Kukan and Fleckenstein are evidently familiar with the situation in Serbia and that they are ready to mediate, since there is no trust between government and the opposition.
The biggest opposition coalition Alliance for Serbia presented its 42 demands for participating in election, which is scheduled for spring 2020, to the former MEPs today. They stressed that 15 September is the deadline for the government to show that it is willing to reach a compromise, by appointing new members of public broadcaster and Regulatory Body for Electronic Media.
On the other hand, representatives of Free Citizens Movement, which invited EU to mediate the negotiations between government and the opposition in an open letter last week, stated that no decision on the boycott of the election should be made before the round table discussions on electoral reform, held at the Faculty of Political Science since July, is finalised.
Kukan and Fleckenstein also met with the representatives of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party and Socialist Party of Serbia on Thursday.