(Hina) - The first meeting of the government commission to monitor the implementation of transition benchmarks in Serbia's negotiation of Chapter 23 and 24 was held in the ministry and presided by Minister Kovač. The commission was established last week after the two chapters in Serbia's EU negotiations were opened.
"We will meet regularly. We want Serbia to have a European future, to advance to EU membership because that automatically means that Serbia has met all those criteria, demands that we set within the framework of Chapter 23," Kovač said.
Justice Minister Ante Šprlje and Veterans' Affairs Minister Tomo Medved also attended the meeting today and after the meeting Šprlje said that during the negotiations Croatia would abide by the principles that apply to all modern European countries and that it would ask that of Serbia too and that it expected Serbia to align its legislation with the EU acquis communautaire.
Minister Medved said that his ministry and veterans' associations had a special role within the government commission to monitor Serbia's adaptation of the law on regional jurisdiction.
Croatia has asked Serbia and Serbia has promised to change that law and harmonise it with EU acquis communautaire, he said.
"It cannot be within Serbia's jurisdiction to persecute Croatian Homeland War veterans," he underscored.
The other issue that will be closely monitored is Serbia's contribution to find all those people missing from the war, he added.