In his interview on the “Inside Albania” podcast with journalist Alice Taylor, Prime Minister Edi Rama did not rule out the possibility of a meeting between the leaders of Kosovo and Serbia at the October 16 summit in Tirana, at a time when tensions between the parties are high.
“We haven’t planned such a thing, and I don’t anticipate it. Anything can happen because in situations like this, where everyone socializes, if there is an opportunity or if the leaders of Germany and France, who will be here, want to talk to them as co-authors of the Franco-German plan on the table, it might happen,” Rama stated.
Faced with criticism from the political class in official Pristina, including Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Foreign Minister Donika Gërvalla, for his ideas about elevating the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia to a conference level and his proposal for the Community of Serb Municipalities, the Prime Minister had a lengthy but clear response.
“I am not trying to be the smart one. I’m sure many of them, including themselves, may be smarter, and they are. But I have a problem with making people or myself look like fools. We cannot fool ourselves. What we have done so far as the Albanian community, in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, has taught us very clearly that we have made all these achievements by clarifying which side we are on, with whom we cooperate closely, and what our way is to improve ourselves as an Albanian factor within our countries and throughout the Western Balkans. The path is very clear: work toward peace, focus on the future, and not remaining hostage to the past. We do not lecture our friends and allies about how they should see the world, but we have constructive cooperation with them and always stand by them. This is how we have succeeded so far. What is there to be surprised about? Most importantly, Serbia lost the war. Kosovo won the war. History has shown that those who lost the war are not interested in peace, unlike those who won the war,” the Prime Minister expressed.
According to Rama, Kosovo should persist in implementing the Franco-German plan to achieve what it aims for: final recognition.
“The French-German plan is the best deal Kosovo can get because it is de facto recognition. It is a live and let live proposal and paves the way for recognition by others. Why aren’t they pushing it? Why aren’t they insisting? In politics and in resolving something in your interest, it’s never a good idea to delve into the other’s mind. Is the other party really interested? Does it really want something? Maybe not, and if we were to remove the major powers that are with us and imagine dialogue only between Serbia and Kosovo, then Serbia might not sit at the table at all but would have done something crazy. But the reality is that we have strong support to make a major step towards final recognition. And we are not accepting this? Why? For what reason? The question is not whether they are interested. The question is whether we are interested or not. I think they understand that they are very interested in resolving this issue once and for all. How is this done? By diverting attention and creating situations or attempting to calm everything down, giving something small in exchange for something bigger? I think the second solution is the answer. It’s not science; it’s simple logic,” the Prime Minister explained.
According to the Prime Minister of Albania, there is nothing wrong if Serbia financially supports the Association of Serb Municipalities.
“Serbia lost the war and cannot imagine a military revenge. This is over! Kosovo has been recognized by a community of countries that will never allow a turning back. Never! No matter what happens! That’s the first point. Secondly, if the Association is established within the constitutional framework of the Republic of Kosovo and is the result of an agreement based on that, then it will not be a space for armed people to come and claim they are members of that Association. It will be a space for municipalities to have self-governance and support from Belgrade. Why not? We have municipalities in the south and east with Greek minorities. They would be very happy if Greece supported them financially. Why not? It’s important to look to the future and do everything to get closer, rather than always thinking about the past. The past is over,” Rama declared.
When asked by journalist Alice Taylor if the European Union has been unfair in its approach to Kosovo and Serbia, Prime Minister Rama responded as follows.
“We had a heated discussion when the EU came out with a statement after the criminal attack in the north. It was all about Kosovo. They explained to us that this is the EU procedure, and the statement was approved by 27 member states before the events took place, so they published it. We told them they could publish it along with another statement that would condemn what had happened, condemn Belgrade for the unjustified act of declaring a day of mourning. Unjustified! We demanded concrete measures against Serbia, not just condemnation of the act. They said it couldn’t be done due to time constraints because it takes a long time to make these statements. Then we told them we wouldn’t align. For the first time in 10 years, we did not align ourselves with an EU statement. I wouldn’t say that the EU has been unfair. I would say that unfortunately, Kosovo has given the EU many reasons to be tougher on them. While Serbia has played the game with more intelligence, a game that continues, it hasn’t ended,” Rama concluded.
