Written question asked by Karen Lumley (Conservative) on Thursday, 1 March 2012, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 5 March 2012. It was answered by David Lidington (Conservative) on Monday, 12 March 2012 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Serbia: Kosovo

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of recent developments in negotiations between Serbia and Kosovo and the effect of those developments on Serbia's bid for EU candidate status.

Answer: A meeting of the EU-facilitated dialogue between Serbia and Kosovo took place from 22-24 February 2012 where agreement was reached on Kosovo's participation in regional forums and a technical protocol concluded on implementation of an agreement on management of the border between Kosovo and Serbia. These developments are very welcome for the benefits they will bring to citizens, stability in the region, and in enabling both countries to realise their EU ambitions.The 28 February 2012 General Affairs Council assessed that Serbia had met the necessary conditions on Kosovo—part of which included reaching the agreements on regional forums and border management—and recommended granting EU candidate status to Serbia. The 1-2 March 2012 European Council confirmed this decision. We welcomed this outcome and hope Serbia will continue to make further progress in its relations with Kosovo.

Secondary information