Pristina lonely in dialogue without US

Direct involvement of the United States of America, along with the European Union in the final phase of dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia is necessary, in order to ensure a final, acceptable and applicable agreement for both sides, MPs and recognition of international relations say.

They say that without US involvement in this process, it is difficult to have a final agreement between Kosovo and Serbia.

MP Time Kadrijaj [Alance for the Future of Kosovo] from the Kosovo Parliament's Foreign Affairs Commission says that with the presence of an American representative in the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, there may be more possibilities for a final agreement and guarantees for implementing the agreements reached.

“When dialogue needs to be completed and the presence of an American representative in the dialogue is a guarantee that all agreements will be implemented and eventually achieved a result. All this must end with mutual recognition between the two countries”, Kadrijaj said.

It was Kosovo President Hashim Thaci, who, during his recent visit to New York, has called for US involvement in the Pristina-based dialogue process.

Thaci at the meeting with the US vice president, Mike Pence, said that the “direct involvement of the US in the final phase is determining for reaching a final, applicable agreement for both sides”.

Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj has also said that at the meeting with EU High Representative Federica Moghrini, he has raised the question of dialogue, with the demand that there be yet another representative from the United States of America at the negotiating table.

International Law Professor at Pristina University Africa Hoti says the presence of an American representative in Kosovo-Serbia political dialogue is necessary, as according to him, the United States of America has been guarantor of many agreements for Kosovo.

The first “relates to the historical aspect, now the most evidence that whenever the US has been on the table for Kosovo, we naturally have the success of negotiations, which Kosovars have felt guaranteed by the American presence itself. The second argument relates to the not-so favourable and not many EU homogens, the more the fact that a number of these states do not recognise Kosovo, but are also beginning to have a destructive role towards developments in Kosovo. This from the Kosovar side is seen as the process that in itself carries the risk of”, Hoti said.

Political analyst Ilir Ibrahimi says the direct involvement of the United States of America, in political dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, in the final phase of the dialogue would play an important role in reaching an agreement. But, according to him, it should be seen whether the U.S. will be at the negotiating table or not.

I don't see it as something harmful, a greater presence of the United States in this dialogue, so there should be an opportunity to get involved in this dialogue. However, we should also play our role in this case because we are not sending positive messages to the U.S., especially on the issue of demarcation, where we have a kind of disregard for the Government of Kosovo's statements to the United States”, Ibrahim said.

The US has been part of the technical dialogue in 2011-2012 after sending its representatives during talks in Brussels.

Representatives of nongovernmental organisations in Kosovo have said that after six years, since the start of the dialogue in Brussels, in addition to the impasse in the agreement implementation plan, reports between Kosovo and Serbia have been tense.

So far Pristina and Belgrade have reached a series of agreements in the EU-launched dialogue, including the first agreement on normalising relations in April 2013, which envision the formation of the Association of Serb-run municipalities.

The goal of dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, according to the European Union, is to relax reports between the two countries so that Kosovo and Serbia can continue further with the European integration process.