Belgrade: The DS Party President Boris Tadic yesterday got green light from the Democratic Party (DS) main board that met in Belgrade yesterday, to negotiate a parliamentary majority.

On Sunday Tadic, who called on his party to support a government that would be formed with the Socialists (SPS) and the two other parties in the SPS-led pre-election coalition: the Associated Pensioners Party (PUPS) and United Serbia (JS) on Saturday, also got the right to decide on personnel issues concerning future cabinet ministers that might come from their ranks.

The DS Party President, Tadic said that an agreement on a future together is possible only if both parties “forget about the past”.

Founded and led by late Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, the SPS had been the ruling party in Serbia throughout the 1990s.

Tadic said yesterday that during the negotiations to form the next government, “the policy and convictions of the Democratic Party, too, will be defended”, but added that “there will be space left for others who will find themselves in the new cabinet”.

Commenting on Tadic’s Saturday speech, SPS leader Ivica Dacic said such sentiment can represent a step forward in bids “to normalize relations between the DS and the SPS”. However, he said that the Socialists “did not and will not” talk to other “political options” while their negotiations with the Radicals (SRS) and the DSS-NS are ongoing.

Dacic also said that the coming days will show clearly whether there will be a ruling coalition forged with the SRS-DSS-NS.

Commenting on Tadic’s strong desire to for government, the SRS deputy leader Tomislav Nikolic said, “Tadic has demonstrated that he has no political idea or principles, but is exclusively interested in remaining in power at any cost.” The Radicals once again called on the Socialists to make their position on who they wish to join in the next government clear.