Serbia is ready to sign an agreement with the European Union by the end of January.

Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said, “Serbia hopes that we are going to be able to sign the Stablization and Association Agreement (SAA) on the 28th of January.”

Jeremic met EU top diplomat Javier Solana about the issue.

The signing of SAA is regarded as Serbia’s first formal step towards the EU.

“There is only one political condition for the signing of the SAA and this is full cooperation with The Hague tribunal,” Jeremic added.

Jeremic also met Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht. He said Belgium would not like EU to sign the pact so soon with Serbia.

“Belgium was giving a great deal of attention to cooperation with The Hague. De Gucht would talk on 17 and 18 with the new chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY), Serge Brammertz to get information from him as well as to whether this cooperation is full,” Jeremic said.

Slovenia has also raised the prospect of Serbia taking a step closer to joining the EU.

Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel said that Serbia should sign a pre-entry accord as soon as possible.

After a meeting with Mr Rupel, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said Belgrade first had to co-operate fully with the UN war crimes tribunal.

Mr Rupel wants to quicken the process towards the complete signing of a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA), which the EU and Serbia initiated in November 2007.

Serbia is offered a fast track membership, if it allowed its breakaway province Kosovo to declare the independence.