Political dialogue between the EU Member States on the one side and the Governments of Serbia and Montenegroonthe other has intensified in the past four years. The dialogue started in July 2001, when the joint FRY-EU Consultative Task Force (CTF) was established. Its task was to review the situation in certain areas (economy, political conditions, justice, home affairs, etc.) and to compare it with the EU criteria that needed to be met before the work on the Feasibility Study started. In a year’s time, five meetings of the CTF were held and the results of those meetings were embedded in a number of recommendations relating to the priority reforms both in Serbiaand in Montenegro. These recommendations also present compulsory guidelines for further approximation to the EU standards.

The work of the Consultative Task Force was followed by a long break in the formal dialogue regarding our preparations for the Stabilisation and Association Agreement. This was due to the constitutional transformation of former FRY into the state union of Serbia-Montenegro.

In the period July 2002 – July 2003, there were three informal meetings of the EU Commission representatives and representatives of MemberRepublicsof the state union Serbia-Montenegro. It was agreed that it was necessary to organise formal meetings that would enable further development in cooperation and preparations for the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, but in a framework different to the CTF one. Bearing this in mind, a new formal mechanism of cooperation was established - the Enhanced Permanent Dialogue (EPD).In essence, EPD was not different from CTF. It was introduced in the EU-SCG relations in order to ensure positive evaluation of the Feasibility Study and make good use (expert consultations and assistance) of the time left until the SAA negotiations started. This form of “dialogue” with the EU started in July 2003.

On 21February, 4 April, 31May, 7and8June and 28September 2006 and on 2 March 2007, SEIO has, within sectoral meetings of the `Enhanced Permanent Dialogue`(EPD)between Serbia and the European Union, organized the meetings where Serbian Government representatives discussed with the European Commission on the progress of reforms in the country in the following areas: internal market, competition, transport, energy, nuclear safety, information society, network of electronic communications, audio visual sector, justice, liberty and security, trade policy, industrial policy and SME, customs and taxation, fiscal and monetary policy, property rights, as well as environmental protection, food safety and financial control.

Within the plenary sessions of the Enhanced Permanent Dialogue on 6April, 26July and 10November 2006, SEIO organized the meetings for discussing the implementation of the European Partnership, political criteria, development of human resources, labour movement, information society, public administration reforms, status of discussion with Montenegro after its separation from the State-Union and the resolution of unsettled issues, as well as new Serbian Constitution, Constitution Law, electoral legislation, Annual Progress Report of the European Commission for Serbia in the Stabilisation and Association Process (Progressreport). A number of ministers, state secretaries and assistant ministers took part in the meetings of the “Enhanced Permanent Dialogue”.

Enhanced Permanent Dialogue meetings planned for 2010