According to Euronews Albania, the United States Special Envoy for the Western Balkans, Gabriel Escobar, stated on Tuesday that he has yet to receive any assurance or commitment from the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, regarding the implementation of the fundamental agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, along with its annexe.
Kurti mentioned that he had engaged in a discussion with the American envoy regarding “the utmost significance of promptly and completely executing the Basic Agreement and its Annex”. Nevertheless, during an interview with the Voice of America, Escobar remarked that he had not been given an assurance by Kurti.
“We want concrete commitments to start implementing (the agreement). In the case of Kosovo, this includes submitting a draft association of Serbian-majority municipalities. He did not commit to that. Essentially, he committed to going to Brussels and attending the meeting, But nothing else,” Escobar added.
In Brussels on February 27, a Basic Agreement for the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia was reached. Subsequently, on March 18, the parties also agreed on the Implementation Annex, which includes provisions for a certain degree of self-governance for the Serbian community in Kosovo.
Escobar made these comments prior to a meeting scheduled for Thursday in Brussels between the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, and the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić. This will mark the first meeting between Kurti and Vučić since tensions in northern Kosovo escalated at the end of May. The previous meeting between the dialogue facilitators of Kosovo and Serbia occurred on May 2, following the extraordinary elections in northern Kosovo, which were boycotted by the local Serbian population.
The American envoy suggested that it would greatly facilitate the process of holding new elections in northern Kosovo if the current Albanian leaders were to consider resigning.
“If you want to hold new elections with Serb participation, I think resignation is the quickest and easiest way. The petition as an initiative has never been tried before. We ask for the full participation of Serbs in deciding on the elections to be held. How to achieve this goal is a matter that needs to be discussed by both parties. However, I believe that resignation is the fastest. Nonetheless, we are paying close attention to the developments,” Escobar said.
Although the Albanian leaders have not agreed to resign, Kosovo is dedicated to reorganizing the elections in a more considerate manner. We propose implementing an administrative instruction that enables citizens to petition for the removal of their respective municipal leaders.
Escobar expressed his concern regarding the current lack of coordination between the two parties in Kosovo, particularly concerning the utilization of special police units for property seizures and the eviction of certain Serbian institutions from government buildings.
“All these need to be resolved within the framework of dialogue and we call on both parties to ensure that all issues are coordinated with the international community,” he stressed.
