(Adds spokeswomen on meetings)) By David Brunnstrom BRUSSELS, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Days before presidential polls in Serbia pit a pro-EU liberal against a nationalist, the European Union announced on Friday it would launch discussions on offering Serbs visa-free access to the bloc. European Commission spokesman Friso Roscam Abbing said he could not say how long it would take to conclude the talks with Serbia and that strict assessments would be made to ensure it met criteria. The announcement comes at a highly sensitive time in EU-Serbia ties, with Belgrade angry at broad Western support for the independence claim of its breakaway Kosovo province -- whose likely imminent secession is a top issue in the elections. "We are going to start at a technical level at the end of this month," Abbing told a news briefing, adding that similar talks with other Western Balkan stakes would begin in coming weeks and months. Serbian polls show neither hardline challenger Tomislav Nikolic nor pro-Western incumbent Boris Tadic has the outright majority needed for victory in the first-round vote on Sunday, and both must woo undecided voters ahead of a Feb. 3 run-off. The polls also show the dream of travelling around Europe without a visa, and for incomes high enough to pay for such adventures, are the top two reasons most Serbs want their country to join the European Union. The EU signed agreements with five Western Balkan nations in September making it easier and cheaper for citizens from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia to travel to some parts of the 27-nation union. WAR CRIMES OBSTACLE TO EU TIES Serbia's bid to enter the EU has run into problems over its failure to hand over war crimes suspects for trial. The Slovenian EU Presidency and many EU states want to sign a pact with Serbia on Jan. 28 as a first step to EU entry, a likely boost to pro-EU parties in the election run-off. But the signing looks certain to be delayed as unanimity among the 27 EU states is needed, and the Netherlands insisted again on Wednesday it wants Serbia to hand indicted war crimes suspect Ratko Mladic to the U.N. tribunal in The Hague before it will back support the move. The new United Nations war crimes prosecutor for the Balkans Serge Brammertz met EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn on Friday to discuss Belgrade's cooperation with the tribunal. Brammertz said on Wednesday his predecessor's view that Serbia was not fully cooperating still stood and urged Brussels' support in capturing four last fugitives. A spokeswoman for Brammertz said on Friday he would visit Belgrade in February. "Mr Brammertz's strategy is to get in touch with all partners and institutions, countries in the region before going public," a spokeswoman for Solana said. "He underlined the fact that there will be no assessment coming from him until after he has proceeded with these contacts." Rehn reiterated after the talks that he would like to sign the agreement with Serbia as soon as possible but for that the condition of cooperation with the Hague needed to be met. (Additional reporting by Mark John, editing by Matthew Jones)
A protestor holds a cartoon of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, during a protest against the pipeline projects between Bulgaria and Russia in the centre of Capital ...
