CNN.com - Yugoslavia embraces monarchy again
Michael Henderson 
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BELGRADE, Yugoslavia -- Yugoslavia has paved the way for the return of its royal family to the country's capital.
The government has decided to give Crown Prince Alexander Karadjordjevic and his family the right to use two Belgrade palaces -- Stari Dvor (Old Palace) and Beli Dvor (White Palace).
The return of the Yugoslav monarchs after 60 years would follow the similar comeback of former King Simeon II, who was named Bulgaria's next prime minister on Thursday.
The palace properties were used by former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic to receive official guests during his years in power.
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The early 20th century houses are located in the residential Belgrade suburb of Dedinje, home to many western officials and businessmen.
Yugoslavia's new reformist leaders scrapped a communist-era decree which stripped the royal family of citizenship and property rights. The leaders said they wanted to correct a historical injustice.
Milosevic partially lifted the ban in the early 1990s, allowing members of the royal family to come to Yugoslavia. However, only one royal, Prince Tomislav, returned to Yugoslavia to live.
On Thursday, Prince Alexandar visited the family tomb near the town of Topola to commemorate Tomislav's death last year.
The prince said restoring the monarchy is not a priority and his primary concerns are the needs of the impoverished people.
Following a meeting between the prince, Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica and Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindic, Alexander's office said he was, "convinced that his permanent stay in his homeland will be a factor in better understanding and stability." Born in London in 1945, Alexander is the son of Yugoslavia's last king, Peter II, who fled after Nazi Germany overran the Balkan country in 1941.
The prince, now a London-based businessman, visited Belgrade for the first time in 1991.
The Karadjordjevics are a Serbian dynasty that expanded its rule when Yugoslavia was formed after World War I. The royals fled the country in 1941 to escape the Nazis and have lived in Britain since World War II.
