Defense Minister Dragan Sutanovac said on Feb. 4 that the choice of Serbia about whether it will become a member of NATO needed a rational analysis on the basis of which the decision would be made when the time came.

Sutanovac wrote in CorD magazine: "Hence, I think it is really good that we, in Serbia, are starting to talk about joining NATO, since that will help us with the transition from the emotional bond we have with the past to rational discussions focused on the country's future. Of course, all of this should be done in accordance with the Constitution and official state policy."

Serbia, said the minister, will definitely cooperate with NATO, even without being a member and that alliance, and the form of this cooperation will "ultimately be decided by Serbian citizens."

Sutanovac said that Serbia's European integration process had become irreversible and pointed out that the EU was changing: "The Union," he writes, "has embarked on building its own security identity, while remaining 'snuggled' under the NATO umbrella."

"There are no indications that this might change in the near future and this is something that every country which aspires to become a member of the EU needs to consider," writes that defense minister.

Sutanovac also said that NATO was changing - originally formed as a defensive alliance, today its political, security and economic components are more apparent.