Serbia and Kosovo continue to draw closer

“We have a deal,” said EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell after a 12-hour marathon of negotiations in Ohrid, North Macedonia. But the signatures under an agreement between the two countries are still missing.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti had previously negotiated a new agreement that would fundamentally regulate relations between the two hostile Balkan states. Borrell played a mediating role in the negotiations.

“Agreement deemed accepted”

“The agreement and its appendix are considered accepted,” said the EU mediator after the end of the talks. At the same time, he admitted that the two sides had not followed the “more ambitious ideas” of the EU mediators.

The EU has also taken on obligations in the basic agreement: It is to organize a donor conference for financial aid for Serbia and Kosovo in the coming months.

At a first meeting on February 27 in Brussels, both sides verbally approved the draft agreement in principle, which the EU had presented on the basis of a Franco-German proposal and which enjoys US support. The negotiations in North Macedonia were now about specific deadlines in the annex to the agreement, within which the individual points should be implemented.

Kosovo declared its independence in 2008

Kosovo, which is now almost exclusively inhabited by Albanians, seceded from Serbia in 1999 with NATO help and declared its independence in 2008. To this day, Serbia has not recognized this. According to the planned agreement, Belgrade will not recognize Kosovo under international law, but will acknowledge the statehood of its former province. In particular, it should recognize Kosovo’s passports, license plates and customs documents. For its part, Kosovo should institutionally secure the rights of the Serbian ethnic group in the country.

Right-wing extremists threatened Vucic with “hot” protests

As in Brussels, Vucic did not want to sign the agreement that was reached. “I didn’t sign anything today,” he told reporters in Ohrid. “We each showed in different ways where the respective red lines are for us.” He described the atmosphere of the talks as “constructive”.

For the Serbian nationalist, any softening of the tough stance against Pristina represents a political risk. Right-wing extremists in Serbia have threatened “hot” protests should Vucic “capitulate” in Ohrid.

Kurti does not want strong Serbian veto rights

Kosovar Prime Minister Kurti is in turn exposed to pressure from the Kosovar Albanian population and electorate, who refuse to make concessions to the Serb ethnic group. However, Article 7 of the agreement stipulates that the Serbs in Kosovo are entitled to “an appropriate degree of independent regulation of their affairs”. In Kosovo, there are fears that excessive veto rights for a future Serbian association of municipalities could block the state.

In 2008 the former Serbian province of Kosovo declared its independence. More than 100 countries, including Germany, have recognized independent Kosovo – five EU member countries, including Spain and Greece, have not. The relationship between the youngest European state and Serbia remained unresolved. Diplomatic efforts by the West in recent years have not led to any significant normalization of the situation.

Moscow uses vulnerabilities

Tensions had escalated again in the past year, with road blockades and incidents of shooting. Against the background of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the settlement of the Kosovo conflict regained importance for the West. Moscow exploits weaknesses in the political order of various Balkan states to gain influence. Belgrade is dependent on Russia because the eastern superpower is using its veto in the UN Security Council to prevent Kosovo from being included in the world organization. Serbia is the only country in the region not to support the EU sanctions against Russia.

nob/gri (dpa, afp, rtr)