According to a press release issued on the web site of the CoE, Rene van der Linden today expressed his deep concern over the newly elected speaker of Serbia"s Parliament, a leader of the Serb Radical Party.
""I have learned with consternation of the election of Tomislav Nikolic, member of a political party run by an indicted war criminal, to the post of Speaker of the Serbian Parliament. In this context, I want to recall that co-operation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia is not optional, but a legally-binding obligation and a commitment that Serbia undertook when joining the Council of Europe," van der Linden was quoted as saying.
"For a member state due to take on the Chairmanship of the (CoE) Committee of Ministers in two days, Mr. Nikolic"s election is a burden on Serbia"s ability to carry out its task," he added.
According to the press release, the Parliamentary Assembly"s values are totally opposed to those of Nikolic"s party. Given the gravity of this issue, the Parliamentary Assembly will continue to follow developments closely.
Some Western countries have also expressed concern over the latest political developments in Serbia.