Serbia will only join the EU if Kosovo will remain an integral part of the country, Serbian PM Vojislav Kostunica has said, quoted by the website of Serbian radio B92. Kostunica declared that his country's number one priority was to retain its territorial integrity.

He reiterated that Kosovo is not only a territory within Serbian boundaries, but it is also a part of the Serbian identity. Thus, he argued that if Serbia starts negotiations with the European structures, then Serbia will compel the EU to acknowledge Kosovo as a part of Serbia.

In his opinion, there are two major problems that stand between Serbia and the European Union: on the one hand, there's Kosovo and on the other there's the EU civil mission sent in the region, which he said violates Serbia's territorial integrity and sovereignty.