T here  is  no  chance  of  the  Serbian  Progressive  Party  (SNS)  and  the Democratic  Party  (DS),  forming  a  ‘wide  coalition’  after  the  spring elections – the leader of the Progressives and the party’s candidate for the position of prime minister, Tomislav Nikolić says in his interview  for  CorD  magazine.  Thinking  back  to  earlier  situations  when, despite support from a huge number of voters he was not given an opportunity to participate in power, Nikolić says that the Progressives are preparing “The widest possible electoral list, never seen before in Serbia,” for the next parliamentary elections that are most likely going to be scheduled for the 6th May.

■ The elections are not even scheduled yet and SNS has already decided to choose you as the prime ministerial candidate providing that you manage to form a new government. What is the underlining message of that decision?
- That was a wish of our coalition partners which are symbolically demonstrating  that  they  are  willing  to  fully  respect  the  SNS  political  programme and that they are not going to behave like the current coalition partners of the Democratic Party. Every one of them wanted a piece of the budget for themselves, as well as to run the state and public enterprises.  They  executed  their  political  programmes  independently from the prime minister’s programme. On the other hand, we also wanted to point to the seriousness of the situation in the country and demonstrate our resolute stance towards the election. Our motive  is  to  benefit  the  state  rather  than  my  personal  desire  to  beat Boris Tadić at both rounds of the presidential election. This decision sends a message to the citizens of Serbian and Boris Tadić, as the President of the Democratic Party, that we don’t want toact contrary to the country’s Constitution. In the event that we win at the elections, our president will not meddle in
the prime minister’s business because that is not good. If the president fails to abide by the Constitution, citizens can also choose not abide by the law.

■  So  how  are  Vojislav  Koštunica  and  Ivica  Dačić  supposed to interpret this message since, according to the current estimates, without their parties you will have a lot of diffi culty in forming a government?

- That’s yet another motive. I said to Boris Tadić that I.....

■ ... you are not going to be his counter candidate at the presidential elections are you?
- No. I said to him that if he really wants to demonstrate how much his  party  worth,  he  should  include his name in the Democratic Party’s  parliamentary  list  since that  is  where  our  political  duel will take place and somebody will come out of it as the winner, just like  in  presidential  elections. We want to find a respectable  Serbian  citizen to  become  the  country’s next president, whether he is  a  party  member  or  not. In  this  way  we  are  demonstrating that we are not happy with the way he perceives his presidential function.

 

■ What about Koštunica and Dačić?
- It is quite evident from my political engagement that I will never let the party that I lead relegate the position of prime  minister  to  a  coalition  partner  providing  that  we win at the elections and are given an opportunity to form a  government.  In  order  to  dispel  any  doubts,  manipulations and public scolding, we have already decided that, if we win and form a government, I will be the prime minister. Whoever wants to join our coalition, whether pre- or post-election, will have to think about at least two topics. One  is  our  political  programme.  Our  political  partners cannot criticize the programme during the campaign and then later wish to form a government with us. The other topic is that a representative of their party cannot also be the prime minister.

 

■ Who do you have in mind if you form a government?
- We have the longest possible list that has not been seen in Serbia before. This list is probably going to be ‘closed’ to political parties soon, but it will see new members joining it on an almost daily basis – these members being various associations,  guilds  and  trade  unions.  For  a  long  time,  I thought that politicians and trade unions have virtually no common ground. Today, when trade unions say that their members  have  been  brutally  laid  off   and  cannot  make ends meet, it is quite obvious that we need to give them an opportunity to say that in parliament  and  to  have  their  input  in drafting  laws,  especially  in  matters that trade unions know best. Now,  I  am  completely  open  to the idea of SNS cooperating with trade unions, even forming a preelection coalition with them.

 

■ What about businesses?
-  The  business  community  has decided  to  form  a  party  of  its own. We did talk about that subject  several  months  ago.  I  think that  they  should  not  get involved in politics but demand that politicians better enable  working  conditions for them, settle their financial  obligations  toward  the state   in   accordance   with the  law  and  finally  define who is considered a tycoon, i.e. who generated their wealth illegally or by working hard. I haven’t seen their political programme as yet and I don’t know what is it all about. I am not a priori rejecting cooperation with anybody and we are going to see under what conditions we can cooperate.

 

■ Did your decision not to be Tadić’s opponent at the presidential election make reaching an agreement of a coalition between SNS and DS somewhat easier?
-  That  is  impossible  since  our  political  programme  and public  appearances  always  contain  a  message  that  Serbia needs change. Change will not happen if DS stays in power.  Change  will  not  take  place  if  we  don’t  ascertain what  was  not  done  properly  and  whether  it  was  badly executed  because  the  government  was  ncompetent  or took  bribes.  Change  will  not  take  place  as  long  as  we have a judicial system such as this where either you have to wait an eternity for a court to pass a sentence in your favour  or  you  lose  all  your  assets  in  matter  of  a  month since  somebody  close  to  the  government  won  the  case against  you.  Change  will  not  happen  until  we  find  out who squandered the wealth of this country. There will be no  change  if  there  is  no  responsibility  for  actions.  How
do you expect SNS to demand that the individuals from DS who were responsible to be held accountable if DS is in our coalition!

 

■ So, how is this partnership going to function, at least in the period leading up to the presidential elections?
- If the Serbian President and his associates took the time to read the Constitution, then our cooperation could be excellent. I did congratulate Boris Tadić on his presidential win the moment I realized that I lost the election, albeit by a fraction. I appreciate anybody chosen by the people. I don’t have any intention of humiliating or undermining him, but I will not  allow  him  to  meddle  into  the  activities  of  the  Serbian Government, if the situation is such. He can forget about running the foreign and interior policy. He will be entitled to do that only if the government delegates those tasks to him.

 

■  Is  cooperation  with  Koštunica  possible  bearing  in mind that you have a different stance on the EU?
- Two days ago I talked to him about why members of his party have been talking to our branches and asking about whether  we  would  form  pre-  or  post-election  local  coalitions with them. I have openly asked Koštunica whether he would  instruct  his  people  since  I  have  already  instructed our branches all over Serbia that they could form any kind of  coalition  they  want.  Concerning  the  coalition  between SNS and the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS), that coalition won’t  be  pre-election  one.  After  the  election,  we  shall  see whether such a coalition would be conducive to SNS’ political programme. I want to establish that kind of relation between whoever wins and a coalition that is being formed.

■ Even if that meant that forming a government would be impossible in that case?
- Even then. For the past four years, I have witnessed the demise  of  the  government  because  its  coalition  partners have been blackmailing them. I would never allow myself anything like that.

■  Between  yours  and  Mirko  Cvetković’s  government what would be the essential difference?
-  Number  one,  a  different  foreign  policy.  No  longer  will there  be  ‘shuttle  diplomacy’.  At  the  moment,  Boris  Tadić and Vuk Jeremić are in charge of the country’s foreign policy. They are flying from country to country, often to countries that have recognized Kosovo’s independence, and are returning  with  reports  on  how  those  countries  actually didn’t recognize Kosovo’s sovereignty - like we don’t have a list of countries that didn’t do so. Our ambassadors have no access to state presidents or governments in many countries because they have been belittled by our line ministry and government. So, in terms of diplomacy, it will be in the hands of diplomats that are accredited by the countries  or  organizations  and  that  will  practically be a U-turn in our foreign policy.

■ What kind of issues are they going to advocate?
- Our priority is to determine, together with the EU, whether we are an acceptable candidate for accession and pre-accession talks. It is up to me to finally find out  what  kind  of  conditions  are  put  before  us,  whether these conditions, or at least some of them, are acceptable, and whether we are at a standstill because such conditions exist or because Serbia just didn’t give enough thought to them. So far, Serbian authorities have had a privileged position compared to the opposition and were allowed to do all sorts of things. I think that Serbia should be in the EU and that the government’s main aim should be in fulfilling the  membership  conditions.  That  is  what  Serbia  undertook in its Constitution, which says that Serbia is dedicated to European values and that European law is supreme to ours. We are adapting our fiscal and economic system, defence system, state organization and administration to the  EU’s  demands.  Even  if,  God  forbid,  there  is  a  breakdown in negotiations with the EU, I would like to live in a country that is regulated as an EU country. So far, I see no
reason for terminating the negotiations and not regulating  our  country  in  accordance  with  the  EU’s  rules.  Also, our priority is to rely on other countries that are friendly towards us, that have raw-materials, energy products and markets for our goods.

■ Which country specifically do you have in mind?
- The Russian Federation. I think that we haven’t progressed much in relations with the Russian Federation, apart from the affinity they have towards us and firm promises, given  in  the  UN  Security  Council,  that  not  a  single  decision about  Kosovo  and  Metohija’s  status  could  be  made  without  us  first  agreeing  to  it.  The  relationship  between  the two countries should be based on their mutual interests. With all our historic respect, love and understanding, it is the economy that should bind us together. Russia can buy everything that we produce. We have a special free trade agreement that enables us to sell many goods without paying customs duty. We have had this advantage for the past 12 years, but never used it. Also,  I  would  like  to  mention  Chinese  investments, which are acceptable to both the EU and the U.S., so why shouldn’t  they  be  acceptable  to  us  too?  I  think  there  are many states that we haven’t had ‘communication’ with in the past eleven or twelve years. Some of it is due to selfcensorship, i.e. so that we are not reprimanded by the EU for  having  relations  with  Belarus,  for  instance,  and  some of it is because we want to show to western countries that EU  membership  has  no  alternative,  just  like  the  Serbian president said. So, that’s what led us to where we are today.  By  sticking  to  only  one  road,  we  have  neglected
the others. I am confident that the priority of at least one segment of the government will be to establish relations with many countries in the world, on mutually beneficial economic ground.

 

■  Was  your  statement  about  Serbia  receiving  100  billion euros worth of investments a slip of the tongue or did you really mean what you said?
- No, it wasn’t a slip of the tongue. I had calculations that showed that almost 80 billion euros worth of investmentshave been made in Serbia in the last ten years.

■  We  had  star  status  following  the  fall  of  Slobodan Milošević’s regime.
- I think we should have the star again, but this time in an investment sense. That is our problem – we haven’t used our chances. Some people are saying that Tomislav Nikolić should be reprimanded for promising to bring in investors, but those who failed to bring them, despite their star status, are not punished.

■ What is your plan for attracting investments during this crisis?
- I think that with only a few large investments we can expect to attract up to 100 billion euros. I have to substantiate everything I’ve said and will say. The time when governments were only making empty promises is long gone. Such governments usually find an excuse as to why their promises have failed, followed by another round of promises they cannot keep. If we promise to participate in the Danube-Morava-Vardar-the  Aegean  Sea  investment,  if  we promise that we will participate in the investment pertaining  to  the  custom  free  zone  located  on  the  right  bank  of the  Danube  River  and  stretching  between  Novi  Sad  and Belgrade,  if  we  promise  to  make  huge  investments  in  renewable  energy  sources  and  revive  our  agriculture,  then we will have to prove it all.

■  You  haven’t  made  any  concrete  promises  about Kosovo.
-  You  know,  there  is  a  different  level  of  responsibility  for the  government  and  the  opposition.  The  authorities  are the  ones  to  draft  and  implement  plans  and  programmes. The opposition reacts to those plans and programmes and seldom  supports  them.  It  usually  criticizes  them  because it  searches  for  negative  aspects.  Kosovo  is  a  problem  that should be solved via a consensus in Serbia. As a member of the opposition party, I see no such consensus since nobody wants to call me to discuss it. If we win, I will try to have a consensus by inviting the representatives of all parliamentary parties to talk about what we will do in Kosovo. I have never seen a plan, programme, set of measures or daily implementation of decisions about Kosovo, so I can’t criticize or oppose them. However, I have been constantly receiving demands from the government, which has reversed our political system, to tell them what I would do in Kosovo.

 

■  I  guess  the  electorate  should  know  that  in  order  to make an informed choice.
- They will have an informed choice. The electorate do not need to make that choice today. They expect a solution for Kosovo. They don’t expect it from me nor am I under any illusion that I am able to decide about Kosovo’s destiny. I can help the people in seeking to find
a solution. A person has never told me what kind of solution it has or called me  for  a  consultation,  but  they  are asking  me  to  tell  them  my  solution so  they  can  criticize  it.  If  I  said,  for instance,  that  I  would  accept  all  the proposed  conditions  since  I  wanted
us to live better, I would immediately have  a  problem  with  the  electorate since  the  authorities  would  use  that to  turn  the  media  against  the  ‘traitor’  Tomislav  Nikolić.  If  I  said  that  I wouldn’t accept any of the conditions, then  the  authorities  would  presume that  I  was  a  war  monger.  If  I,  as  an ordinary mortal man, ask the authorities  what  they  want  to  do,  I  will  be the only one doing that since none of the press have ever asked Boris  Tadić  what  are  we going  to  do  in  Kosovo.  I have  just  given  you  both sides  of  the  spectrum  in order to demonstrate that I can understand the diffi-cult situation that the person running the state is in, but I really cannot understand why he cannot shift some of the responsibility to the opposition party.

 

■  What  would  you  do  first  if  you  were  appointed  as prime minister?
- We need to talk to the EU immediately. The next day we can talk to the Russian Federation. It is very clear that we are three steps behind Croatia and that is inexcusable. It is unfair that Croatia has become an EU member and Serbia still hasn’t obtained even candidate status. This is not the real situation ‘in the field’. They have turned a blind eye in the  case  of  Croatia.  On  the  other  hand,  Croatia  will  soon have the right to veto every decision that concerns Serbia. And, in that situation, when sport supporters from the two countries are still fighting amongst themselves and when both groups are singing jingoistic songs, it is easy to presume  that  Croatia  is  not  going  to  be  in  favour  of  Serbia’s integration in the EU.

■ How would you change that?
-  We  need  to  talk  about  that  with  the  new  Croatian  Government.  I  think  it  is  good  that  Croatia  has  changed.  You couldn’t talk with HDZ. If you ask me, we could cooperate with Croatia as our neighbour providing that the country has fulfilled all of the conditions for them joining the EU, is  treating  all  of  its  citizens  equally  and  is  protecting  the assets of Serbs regardless of whether they live in Croatia or not. My hands are not tied by the past. We need to talk about  all  the  problems.  Negotiations about Kosovo need to be at the high-
est  level.  You  cannot  convince  any citizen,  even  a  very  young  one,  that Borko Stefanović can single-handedly resolve  the  issue  of  Kosovo’s  status. Whoever appointed him to that position  should  also  attend  the  negotiations.  Of  course,  such  people  should not sit with Hashim Thaci at the same table until it is ascertained, without a doubt, that he did not commit crimes against Serbs. We can talk to any other person elected by the people. Being a politician is a profession where you have to talk to everybody.

 

■ Even with Šešelj?
- I know that there isn’t a way for the two  of  us  to  talk  to  each other, since, in the last three and a half years, his contact with  me  has  been  reduced to insults and, more importantly,  history  is  repeating itself  –  the  opposition  is again being prevented from coming to power. Of course, I will never forget the insults and curses which were said in front of my grandchildren since I was his best man, I am a godfather to his grandchildren and I will never say anything bad about his family. Politically speaking, I don’t know how the Radicals can make it in to parliament again after the  elections  so  I  don’t  think  that  DS  can  count  much  on their help. They could possibly only count on them during the election campaign. They print newspapers and books against  me  and  not  against  Boris  Tadić  and,  by  doing  so, they are siding with him. For me, that chapter is closed.

■  Do  you  think  that  it  is  worthwhile  being  the  prime minister during the Kosovo crisis and the difficult economic downturn?
- If you would ask an ordinary citizen that question, he or she would say no. If you ask a politician, he would tell you that he lives for that. I know it comes with a price. With regards  to  my  family,  they  really  want  to  see  me  spend more  time  at  home  with  them.  But  with  responsibility comes the feeling that you should leave behind a legacy. I would love for my legacy to be that I did a good job and