The UN Security Council discussed the new report on Kosovo, a session characterized by high tensions between Pristina and Belgrade, with accusations on both sides that the bilateral dialogue is being obstructed.<\/p>\n
In the New York session headed by Russia, members of the Security Council called for an agreement in the next meeting in Brussel and for both sides to refrain themselves from escalating tensions.<\/p>\n
Kosovo\u2019s Foreign Minister, Donika G\u00ebrvalla said that Serbia is trying to hinder the European integration of the Balkan region.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is clear that Serbia does not want an agreement in the dialogue. Otherwise, they\u2019ll obstruct every agreement, because the Serbia of 2023 does not wish to be a part of the EU anymore,\u201d G\u00ebrvalla said.<\/p>\n
During her speech, G\u00ebrvalla mentioned crimes against Albanian citizens during the 1999 war and compared the war in Kosovo to the actual occupation of Ukraine, while accusing \u201cSerbia as the biggest threat to the peace in the Balkans\u201d.<\/p>\n
She also complained that the President of the Security Council, Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia, refuted her right to hold a speech in Albanian. Nebenzia denied by saying G\u00ebrvalla would have been allowed to speak in Albanian, had she insisted on it.<\/p>\n
On the other side, the Serbian Foreign Minister, Ivica Da\u010di\u0107 accused Kosovo of not wanting a dialogue. He argued that his counterpart\u2019s speech highlights that they want conflicts to continue.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a necessity that the Community of Serb Municipalities is formed as soon as possible, because this is the only mechanism possible to protect the rights and the security of the Serbian community in Kosovo,\u201d Da\u010di\u0107 said during his speech, while also claiming that Pristina is avoiding fulfilling this obligation, on purpose.<\/p>\n
\u201cSerbia will never recognize the independence of Kosovo,\u201d Da\u010di\u0107 added further, requesting for the full implementation of the UN Resolution 1244, which offered a framework for the conflict settlement, approved in 1999.<\/p>\n
During the presentation of the report, the UNMIK chief, Caroline Ziade called for normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia, urging both sides to refrain from escalating rhetoric.<\/p>\n
\u201cTensions between Kosovo and Serbia not only distanced both sides from trying to normalize relations through dialogue, but also pushed them close to a physical confrontation,\u201d Ziade mentioned during her presentation.<\/p>\n
However, the UNMIK mandate is under scrutiny in Kosovo. Foreign Minister G\u00ebrvalla called it a \u201cdestabilizing factor\u201d in the region. Even representatives from the USA and Great Britain called for a revision of the UNMIK mandate.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The UN Security Council discussed the new report on Kosovo, a session characterized by high tensions between Pristina and Belgrade, with accusations on both sides that the bilateral dialogue is being obstructed. In the New York session headed by Russia, members of the Security Council called for an agreement in the next meeting in Brussel […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":51424,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[250,163,1],"tags":[150,243,151],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n