The Conflict of Interest Commission decided on Friday that it would not launch proceedings against Foreign and European Affairs Minister Marija Pejcinovic-Buric, thus rejecting a motion by an association of war veterans from Slavonski Brod that accused Pejcinovic Buric of being in a conflict of interest.

The Commission concluded that having been an adviser in the project aimed at helping Serbia to expedite its accession negotiations, Minister Pejcinovic Buric did not create any interest in contravention of Croatia’s interest.

The association filed the report against the minister insisting that Pejcinovic Buric’s counselling activities before her ministerial term and her current position in which she monitors the achievements of Serbia in meeting benchmarks within the EU membership talks amounted to a clash of interests.

Dismissing the association’s request, the commission explains that the contents of the project in which Pejcinovic Buric offered counselling services from 2013 to 2016 and the duties to monitor Serbia’s progress in fulfilling the benchmarks differed completely.

Tatijana Vucetic of the Commission explained that being hired as an international expert by the European Commission following the advertised tender for counselling Serbia in a specific project, Pejcinovic Buric did not pursue private interests that might have clashed with Croatia’s interests.