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| Serbian MPs endorse key EU deal | Serbian MPs endorse key EU deal |
| (21 minutes later) | |
| Serbia's parliament has ratified a key EU document, in a major step on the path to joining the bloc. | |
| The Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) was backed by 139 deputies, with 26 voting against. | |
| However, it still has to be backed by all 27 EU countries, some of whom are still not fully satisfied with Serbia's co-operation on war crimes issues. | However, it still has to be backed by all 27 EU countries, some of whom are still not fully satisfied with Serbia's co-operation on war crimes issues. |
| The EU has been a divisive issue in Serbia, partly causing the collapse of the last government. | The EU has been a divisive issue in Serbia, partly causing the collapse of the last government. |
| In subsequent elections, however, pro-EU parties were voted in with a substantial majority. | In subsequent elections, however, pro-EU parties were voted in with a substantial majority. |
| The issue has also caused a split in the opposition Serbian Radical Party (SRS), leading to the resignation of its leader Tomislav Nikolic. | |
| Last week, in a historic U-turn, he committed the nationalist party to backing the SAA. | |
| But that provoked a backlash by many members, forcing him to step down and form his own breakaway faction, while hardliner Dragan Todorovic took charge of the main SRS parliamentary group. |