Tadic angry because Pahor foiled agreement

Apart from Slovenia, one of the organizers Croatia, was very much reserved regarding public statements on ongoing preparations for the conference. From Slovenia, however completely different information from the highest level was coming here within few days only, for example that the meeting shall be held and that the meeting shall be cancelled.
The stance from the Serbia President's cabinet has been the same all the time - Serbia shall participate if Kosovo Albanians participate under the name of UNMIK-Kosovo because that is in line with the UN decisions and since both Slovenia and Croatia are the UN members.

Yesterday, two days before the conference is due to begin, media report range from ‘Pahor has failed' to ‘Slovenia thinks that the conference does not depend on one man only' and that ‘Serbia is responsible because the conference has been brought in question'.

As ‘Blic' learns, from the very beginning of talks on organization of the conference, Serbia president was consulted as if he too was one of the organizers although the  organizers were formally Slovenia and Croatia only. That was to send a message about importance being given to Serbia in the region. Serbia president Tadic was interested equally as Pahor and Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor that the conference held. Proposal that the participants would be identified by their names only was immediately rejected by President Tadic. He said that at all meetings ‘he represents Serbia and not himself'.

Tadic also said at the beginning that ‘he supports participation of Kosovo but in line with the UN principles. However, then a red line was drawn that there shall be names of all countries while in front of Kosovo representatives there would be name of the UNMIK Chief Zanier and Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci.
‘That was acceptable for Slovenia and the principles of the conference were practically defined on the very first day', Blic source says.

However, at the meeting in Ptuj on March 5 the story on ‘agreement on technical details to be made' started quite unexpectedly. Then shuttle diplomacy and a kind of pressure that ‘a new compromise is to be found' from what have been already agreed at the very beginning started. That was actually pushing of already rejected idea through a small door.

Slovenian Prime Minister came the evening before yesterday on a sudden visit to Belgrade. President Tadic was very angry after meeting with him because there was an attempt of complete change of the principles that the organizers earlier agreed about.

Pahor, however said that he was making utmost efforts that the conference is held but added ‘it does not depend on one man only'.

‘We would like the conference on Saturday to be successful but we have many problems that others have failed to solve until so far. Attempt by Slovenia and Croatia to organize the conference is frank', Pahor said yesterday ahead of his trip to Brussels.

Pahor met in Brussels yesterday with the European Council President Herman van Rompuy. After the meeting he told journalists ‘Tomorrow is a new day' and that was all he said.

Rompuy's participation at the meeting in Slovenia has been also differently interpreted. Slovenian deputy and also a reporter for Serbia in the European Parliament Jelko Kacin said two days ago that ‘Rompuy said he shall not participate if President Tadic is not to come'. However, Rompuy's PR said yesterday that ‘Kacin is not authorized to speak in the name of the EU Council officials or interpret their decisions or intentions'.

According to the PR Rompuy shall decide about his coming to the conference in Slovenia today.