Minister of State at the Foreign Office of Germany Werner Hoyer has stated that Serbia's EU membership is highly welcome, but added that it is too early to decide on the beginning of the country's accession talks.

Hoyer underlined at a Bundestag's session on European issues that Serbia headed by President Boris Tadic has made a great progress on its EU pathway, particularly pointing to the country's cooperation with the ICTY.

We are very interested in constructive relations with Serbia, but we need to see a significant progress, said Hoyer according to Bundestag's website.

Stressing that at the moment it is too early to decide on the beginning of the accession talks with Serbia, Hoyer said that the government in Berlin is yet to take an official stand on this issue.

As for the incidents in north Kosovo, Hoyer expressed misgivings regarding Belgrade and Pristina's capacities to guarantee peace, adding that it is now necessary for Serbia to clearly state its position towards those who are responsible for the escalation of violence.