The claims made by Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti that he was the sole presenter of a sequenced proposal for implementing the agreement on normalizing relations with Serbia in a recent meeting with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić in Brussels have been refuted by sources within the European Union. These sources stress that the EU had put forth its own plan for a sequenced approach to both parties.
In the latest round of negotiations for normalizing relations between Kosovo and Serbia, which took place on Thursday, no agreement was reached.
Recalling statements by the EU’s High Representative, Josep Borrell, that the EU had submitted a compromise proposal for parallel implementation, EU sources pointed out that as early as June, the EU’s Special Envoy for Dialogue, Miroslav Lajčák, had presented a sequenced plan. This plan had been the subject of seven separate rounds of meetings with the involved parties up to the present.
Therefore, these EU sources contend that Prime Minister Kurti’s assertion that his proposal was the exclusive option on the table is “simply inaccurate”.
The document referred to by EU sources outlines the implementation process, which begins with the “Initiation of Negotiations for the Statute of Self-Government for Serbs in Kosovo”, implying the creation of an Association of Municipalities.
Simultaneously, Serbia would no longer insist on using asterisks and footnotes or involving UNMIK (United Nations Mission in Kosovo) in regional forums.
The negotiations would then culminate in an agreement regarding the “Statute of Self-Government Instruments for Serbs in Kosovo”.
The next step, as per the EU’s proposal, would involve both parties refraining from intervening in each other’s internal affairs and renouncing any form of violence or incitement to violence.
According to the EU, the subsequent measures would include establishing “self-government instruments for Serbs in Kosovo”, transforming Serbia’s administered structures in Kosovo under these self-governance instruments, recognizing state documents and symbols, and agreeing on a binding roadmap for implementing obligations arising from previous agreements in the dialogue.
The “Formalization of the Status of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo” would follow, along with practical arrangements for the exchange of permanent missions. Afterward, Serbia would not oppose Kosovo’s accession to any international organization, while Kosovo would complete its internal procedures for safeguarding Serbian cultural and religious sites.
Moreover, in line with the EU’s proposal, a special working group led by the European Union would oversee the implementation of the agreement’s provisions. Subsequently, a donors’ conference would be convened, and the parties would collaborate on project preparations.
Finally, according to the EU’s proposal, negotiations would commence for a legally binding agreement encompassing the comprehensive normalization of relations.
This document, as disclosed by EU sources, is dated July 19 of this year.
The meeting between Prime Minister Kurti and President Vučić on Thursday occurred under the mediation of the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, and the EU’s Special Envoy for Dialogue, Miroslav Lajčák.
The focus of the meeting, which centered on implementing the Basic Agreement for normalizing relations, yielded no tangible results, according to Borrell.
Borrell noted that Prime Minister Kurti had rejected the EU’s proposal for the simultaneous implementation of obligations stemming from the agreement, while President Vučić had accepted it.
Kurti insisted on Serbia recognizing Kosovo’s independence de facto, whereas Vučić advocated for the establishment of the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities in Kosovo.
Kurti, in his comments, accused Serbia of conditioning the formation of the Association and suggested that this stance had been adopted by EU envoys as well.
On the other hand, Vučić asserted that Kurti was obstructing the creation of the Association, which he viewed as the crux of the matter.
