Thomas Schieb, the German ambassador to Serbia, says that Berlin and the rest of the European Union members’ stand is that what happened in Srebrenica in 1995 was a genocide and that he expects Serbia to share that view, Beta news agency reported.

In an interview with the agency on the occasion of the 24th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide, Schieb said Germany considers the crime as genocide since the two international courts ruled that it was.

“Srebrenica massacre is one of the most horrific crimes of the 20th century,“ Schieb said.

Addressing the Kosovo issue, the ambassador reiterated that Pristina's 100 percent import tariffs on goods from Serbia and Bosnia were the main obstacle to the resumption of the Belgrade – Pristina dialogue on the normalisation of relations.

Schieb added that Germany and France were trying to renew the dialogue and that Berlin had called on Pristina to abolish taxes several times.

“The dialogue is of great importance, and that’s why we intended together with French colleagues to host the summit in Paris, but that didn’t happen. That means it is postponed not cancelled, but I cannot say when will it be held,” the ambassador said.

He added that the US could have an essential role in the dialogue, but that the current format – EU facilitated talks – should not change.