Haradinaj must not resist demarcation

Analyst and former US diplomat Daniel Serwer has given his attention to the current situation in Kosovo, as well as warnings he expressed Wednesday to US Deputy Assistant Secretary Hoyt Yee, the corrupt leaders in the Balkans.

Serwer commenting on the deadlock that has engulfed Kosovo in the case of border demarcation with Montenegro, the process that has blocked and visa liberalisation, says Prime Minister Haradinaj is good to get away with the situation and not resist demarcation. As he put it, Kosovo has much bigger issues to worry about.

My advice is to get out of this rabbit hole as soon as possible. Kosovo has much bigger and more important issues to worry about. This is an issue Ramush Haradinaj should have abandoned as soon as he took office. Kosovo has little to win and a big deal to lose, if it continues to resist demarcation”, estimates Balkan affairs analyst Daniel Cerwer for Express.

The former US diplomat has also spoken of the continuing threats top Serbian officials make for a possible war with Kosovo. The last to make similar statements was Marko Djurovic, director of the Kosovo office in Serbia's government. Djuric said they are willing to fight in Kosovo, to defend what he says they are theirs.

Nevertheless, Serwer estimates Djuric, should know better, that there will not be fighting for Kosovo as long as NATO forces are there.

“I hope they will stay until the full normalisation of relations between Belgrade and Pristina, including UN membership for Kosovo and the exchange of diplomatic representatives at the ambassadorial level. Djuriqi's remarks make me wonder if he is the right guy to conduct an internal Serbian dialogue on this” subject, he added.

In addition, Serwer stresses that Serbia needs introspection and realism, not fantasy and threats.

In addition to the situation with Kosovo, Serwer has spoken of Hoyt Yee's statements, deputy US Assistant Secretary of State, who on Wednesday raised concerns saying the West should be more firm with corrupt Balkan leaders by not inviting them to Washington and Brussels.

Serwer says Hoyt Yee seemed serious when he made such statements and that the refusal of the American visa of Milorad Dodik, Republika Srpska chairman, could be linked to this.

US Assistant Secretary of State Hoyt Yee, recently engaged in the Western Balkans, said the West should be more firm against leaders accused of wrongdoing or corruption in their countries, adding that this is a shame that as political leaders of the Balkans, despite punishable acts, they are welcomed into many European capitals, as if their acts constitute nothing bad.