Serbia-Montenegro on Monday opened talks with the European Union (EU) on signing an agreement on association between the two sides, a prerequisite for the Balkan country to start EU membership talks.

The talks, estimated to last one year, will be focused on political issues, regional cooperation and the general framework for the agreement on Serbia-Montenegro-EU association, the official Tanjug news agency reported.

The EU negotiating team is headed by Reihard Priebe, Director of Western Balkans of the European Commission.

The Serbia-Montenegro delegation, headed by Serbia-Montenegro Foreign Minister Vuk Draskovic, is represented by three groups-- one from the state union and two from each of its two republics.

Source: Xinhua