The issue of the tariff rate on Croatian cigarette imports and the question of what the Serbian government had agreed with the European Commission caused a heated argument in parliament.
Ljajic said Serbia had been "under big pressure" ahead of the European Commission's report on Serbia's progress towards EU membership. "I never said our chances were big. I said we were embarking on the negotiations, that our hands were tied."
He recalled that the negotiations on the tariff rate began last November, but with the EC and not with Croatia. He denied that this had anything to do with Croatian President Ivo Josipovic's current visit to Serbia.
"There is still no final agreement and nothing has been signed and the decision will have to be confirmed in parliament," the media quoted Ljajic as saying.
The opposition said the decision was not good for Serbia because it was accepted a day before the release of the progress report, accusing the government of incompetence.
Ljajic said the government yesterday sent the Commission a note saying it was willing for talks and that it wanted an agreement.
The Commission said today that Serbia had agreed to its demands and that it would allow Croatia to continue to export cigarettes at privileged tariff rates in the same volume as before Croatia joined the EU.
After Croatia's EU accession on July 1, the Commission began negotiations on changes to Stabilisation and Association Agreements which the EU has with Western Balkan countries because by joining the EU, Croatia left the Central European Free Trade Agreement.