The Serbian and Estonian presidents, Boris Tadic and Toomas Hendrik Ilves, expressed expectation Monday that Serbia's EU candidacy bid will be sent to the European Commission (EC) in the near future.

After meeting with President Ilves in Tallinn, Tadic said that Serbia's candidacy should not be blocked, as it is important not only for Serbia but for the entire Western Balkan region that the integration process continues.

"We expect that Serbia will no longer be blocked and that our application will be before the European Commission in the immediate future, because we aspire to get candidate status early next year and start membership talks in late 2011 or early 2012," Tadic said.

Asked if he expects that at some point in its EU integration Serbia will be faced with the condition of recognizing Kosovo, Tadic said that he hopes the two issues will remain separate.

"No one has posed such terms before me. As a predictable partner, I always tell the EU officials I am talking to that Serbia will never recognize Kosovo's independence, and that is the position of the Serbian state. However, I want us to open dialogue and resolve the historic conflict between Serbs and Albanians, Tadic explained.

"We need to solve problems by talking with the Albanians. This is the policy which considers the legitimate interests of the Albanians and the EU. The resolution adopted in the UN General Assembly and coordinated between Serbia and all EU countries is a good foundation for arriving at a solution," Tadic said.

President Ilves expressed satisfaction with the compromise reached by Serbia and the EU on the resolution regarding the International Court of Justice advisory opinion and its adoption in the UN, and expressed expectation it will lead to dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina.

Estonia sees Serbia's future in the EU and this is the most important area where Estonia and Serbia can cooperate. Right now, the key thing is that the issue of Serbia's EU candidacy comes before the European Commission, where Serbia's progress will be evaluated, Ilves said.

On Tuesday, President Tadic will meet with Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip and parliament speaker Ene Ergma.