Serbian Deputy Prime Minister for European integration Bozidar Djelic talked with three European commissioners in Brussels yesterday and presented proposals to make EU’s assistance to Serbia and other states more efficient.
Djelic told Tanjug news agency that on behalf of Serbia and other Western Balkan countries, he acquainted EU Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn with a proposal according to which Western Balkan countries would present their budget and pension systems each year, as part of the European mechanism valid for EU members.
They would also be granted limited guarantees for entering the capital market, as a form of incentives for sustainable public finances, he added.
Rehn accepted this idea and we agreed to work on it further in the weeks to come. If we succeed in including such an idea in the upcoming EU financial perspective, this would mean stable and cheap financing for all Western Balkan states, Djelic observed.
As for the EU, this would mean exerting influence on the formation of economic policy and sustainability of public finances in these states for an entire decade, which would enable Serbia to save up no less than one billion Euros, Djelic explained.
With European Commissioner for Budget and Financial Programming Janusz Lewandowski it was agreed to increase flexibility in finances of countries undergoing the accession process.
The Deputy Prime Minister, who also met with European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Dacian Cioloş today, said that they discussed the possibility to enable all prospective EU members access to programmes that are reserved for EU states only.
For our country and our neighbours this would mean more possibilities and more funds before we join the EU, Djelic concluded.
Source balkans.com
