Serbia has damaged Kosovo for 22 billion euros during war

Over 22 billion euros account for the damages of the war Serbia has caused in Kosovo before and during the recent war (1990-1999), government officials and analysts in Pristina say.

But, compensation for the damage to war so far has not been discussed during the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia that was held in Brussels, with the ease of the European Union.

Currently, Kosovo and Serbia have entered the final phase of the dialogue, in which a final agreement that would imply normalisation of reports between the two countries, meanwhile, according to analysts, on the agenda of talks should be discussed even in the war damage.

Although this issue has not been addressed in the talks in Brussels, this topic was raised once in the Vienna negotiation process, which was held prior to Kosovo's declaration of independence. But this topic was closed immediately, as the Serb side has rejected such a request.

Muhamet Mustafa, from the “Riinvest” Institute, has been the team's co-ordinator for economic issues at the Negotiator Group in Vienna.

Mustafa, currently senior adviser at this institute, says the issue has been required to be addressed even in talks that have been held between Kosovo and Serbia in Brussels, in the dialogue process that began in 2011.

He says that for normalising relations between the two countries, Serbia needs to compensate for the damage to war.

The “Ekip of the experts that I led at the time has done an assessment of the damage to war for various sectors, which the value has reached over 22 billion euros. And now, of course, to create a reconciliation, and to see that Serbia really wants to leave behind the politics of (Slo Slobodan) Milosevic, it must be willing to clear accounts and economic damages on private property and other damages that it has caused Kosovo with its own governance and the extermination war that it has carried out against Albanians”.

I personally think that for an account cleanup, for a reconciliation, along with asking for forgiveness for damages, those damage should be damaged”, Mustafa says.

Hakki Shatri, an adviser for economics in the Government of Kosovo, who at the time was part of the team in Vienna, says the international factor has repeatedly hesitated to address the issue.

But, Shatri says compensation for the damage to the war should still be addressed in the context of talks being held in Brussels.

“I think the Kosovo delegation on the agenda of talks at this stage will also list this issue as the particular point of talks with the Serbian side,” said Shatri.

Muhamet Mustafa says the Republic of Kosovo should not give up the retaliation of war damage. He considers that even after the negotiations closed, Kosovo should sue Serbia for the damage to the war.

Of course, Kosovo should see other possibilities as well. Although, Kosovo is not yet a member of the International Courts, because of its position in the United Nations Organisation, but there is no space. I think that Kosovo should handle, it should engage teams of experts to see how in the best manner and in the most adequate country this indictment can be done and executed,” Mustafa told Radio Free Europe.

Government officials that Kosovo, meanwhile, had earlier declared that the indictment would arise when Kosovo could do so as a member of the United Nations Organisation.