Serbian MPs endorse key EU deal

Serbian President Boris Tadic is pushing for EU membership

Serbia’s parliament has ratified a key EU document, in a major step on the path to joining the bloc.

The Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) was backed by 139 deputies, with 26 voting against.

However, it still has to be backed by all 27 EU countries, some of whom are still not fully satisfied with Serbia’s co-operation on war crimes issues.

The EU has been a divisive issue in Serbia, partly causing the collapse of the last government.

In subsequent elections, however, pro-EU parties were voted in with a substantial majority.

The issue has also caused a split in the opposition Serbian Radical Party (SRS), leading to the resignation of its leader Tomislav Nikolic.

Last week, in a historic U-turn, he committed the nationalist party to backing the SAA.

But that provoked a backlash by many members, forcing him to step down and form his own breakaway faction, while hardliner Dragan Todorovic took charge of the main SRS parliamentary group.