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The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, said on Wednesday that the agreement on the normalization of relations with Serbia must be protected by the European Union and the United States, while he accused Belgrade of violating it without consequences.
He made these comments during a debate organized by the Atlantic Council, on the topic "Returning to the right path: Unlocking the Euro-Atlantic and developmental future of Kosovo".
Prime Minister Kurti said that the normalization of relations needs the normalization of Serbia in the democratic and European sense of the word.
"And all this not only because Kosovo's membership in international organizations should not be opposed, but because Kosovo and Serbia should be able to live side by side as normal neighbors with good European neighborly relations", he said, emphasizing that for this reason, he had welcomed the letter of American President Joe Biden in 2021, which placed mutual recognition at the center of a future normalization agreement between Kosovo and Serbia.
"In the face of the Russian occupation of Ukraine, the Atlantic community sought reconciliation with less. Instead of a final agreement centered on mutual recognition, governments sought an agreement on the road to normalization centered on de facto mutual recognition. Of course, our government is for dialogue, and under any circumstances we commit ourselves only to agreements that further Kosovo's interests and strengthen our citizenship and that do not diminish or damage it," said Prime Minister Kurti.
Kosovo and Serbia agreed earlier this year in Brussels and Ohrid for a normalization agreement based on a European plan that does not include mutual recognition, but requires good neighborly relations, recognition of documents and symbols and respect for sovereignty and integrity. each other's land. The agreement requires that the parties do not hinder each other in the integration processes and provides for the fulfillment of all agreements previously reached in the negotiations mediated by the European Union, including the one for the Association of municipalities with a Serbian majority in Kosovo.
On October 26, the leaders of Germany, France and Italy and the institutions of the European Union met separately in Brussels with the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti and the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, to discuss the way forward towards normalization, asking Kosovo to establish the Association, while Serbia, the de facto recognition of Kosovo.
Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said he was ready to sign the proposal, but accused Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic of refusing to sign.
Meanwhile, the Serbian president said that the proposal represents a good basis for further talks, but rejected any possibility of recognizing Kosovo's independence.
Prime Minister Kurti did not speak about the Association today, but criticized Western diplomacy for "petting" Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.
"If there is any lesson to be learned from the war in Ukraine, it is that 'coddling' autocrats never works. They take generosity shown to them as a sign of weakness, fear, or both. They, unfortunately, understand only democratic stability and strength. But instead of sticks, the president of Serbia was offered carrots. The more trouble it causes in the region, the more money it demands and receives from the EU. The more it moves towards Russia and China, the more the European Union follows it with funds. Meanwhile, since he came to power, Serbia has only returned to autocracy", said Prime Minister Kurti.
However, he said that Kosovo remains committed and constructive in the talks.
"Now we have an agreement that must be protected by those who brought it. A legally binding agreement cannot be broken without consequences. However, Serbia has violated in many cases without any consequences", said Prime Minister Kurti.
Serbia has announced European integration as its aspiration, but has refused to join Western sanctions against Russia due to its aggression in Ukraine, primarily because of the Kremlin's support for Belgrade's claims to Kosovo, independence which he continues to oppose.
Prime Minister Kurti said that Kosovo is a success story of NATO intervention on the one hand and of democratic state building and socio-economic development on the other.
"Using Kosovo as a precedent to justify intervention elsewhere, as the Kremlin is doing, is nothing but a direct attack on truth, humanity and reason. Such a thing shows a complete disregard for international law and the responsibility to protect, as an international norm that seeks to ensure that the international community never again fails to stop the crimes of mass atrocities of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity", said Prime Minister Kurti.
The European Union has made it clear to Kosovo and Serbia that the implementation of the agreement on the normalization of relations is a condition for their progress towards European integration. / VOA
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