Engel: If Serbia does not recognise Kosovo, its path to EU is closed

Mr. Engel, who heads the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Commission in a letter sent to Admiral Foggo, who is commander of NATO forces at the headquarters in Naples, expresses his concern about comments the Admiral had made in an interview last December 16th of last year in Belgrade about co-operation between NATO and Serbia that “do not reflect in the right direction the United States policy and faces a Defence Department report sent to Congress earlier this year.

Mr. Engel quoted Admiral Foggo as saying that I see cooperation ( NATO-Serbia) improving in my mind. Right now they're partners and your country is very happy with this, and that's great. We're all right with that. So you'll choose and get what you want to do and how far you want to take these relationships, and we'll be there for you.

My “Brenga has to do with avoiding concerns from the United States over expanding ties in the field of security between Serbia and Russia since 2012. In the report submitted to Congress on May 31st 2019, the Department of Defence explains in detail the expanded relations between Serbia and Russia”, writes Mr. Engel underlining some of the positions expressed in the report.

Serbia provides the most favourable environment for Russian influence in the Western Balkans ... Before President Aleksandar Vucic's Serbian Progressive Party, which took power in 2012, Serbian bilateral military relations with Russia were slim”

Following the 2012 elections in Serbia, the Serbian Progressive Party took steps to boost its military relations with Russia, leading to the signing of an official defence co-operation agreement in November 2013 ... The first ever military exercise between Russia and Serbia, codenamed SREM-2014, took place later that year in Serbia, including more than 400 Russian and Serbian airmen... In 2014, the Serbian Armed Forces organized a military parade for Russian President Vladimir Putin, moving to match the date of the holiday of these forces to President Putin's visit.

The pace of training has increased since 2014... Serbia received a gift of six MiG-29 Russian-used aircraft in October 2017... Serbia has ordered four Mi-35 helicopters and plans to order ground-air missile systems, Pancir S1. Serbia also received a gift of 30 T-72 tanks and 30 BRD-2 vehicles from Russia at this time”, Mr. Engel quoted the Defence Department report.

In the letter, Mr. Engel writes that the “diplomats of the United States have long expressed disappointment with Belgrade's readiness to cross the border between East and West. Serbia has not harmonised its foreign policy with the European Union, despite requirements under the EU membership process, and continues to reject a set of joint US-EU priorities”.

Furthermore, Serbia is reluctant to pursue NATO membership” according to the Defence Department's above-mentioned report. Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Europe (Hoyt Yee) summarized the concern of the United States about Serbia by saying, countries should choose which path to follow, no matter how difficult it would be, the country should make its strategic elections, which should be part of official politics ... You can't sit in two chairs at once. Mr. Engel stresses understanding for “expectations” of the Admiral for Serbia to one day join NATO, “but that day is not near. And its path towards the European Union also remains closed if it does not recognise and make peace with Kosovo. Therefore, I urge you in future comments about Serbia, you more carefully balance your statements so that the United States concerns about Belgrade's orientation and its alarming relations with Moscow can be expressed exactly”, writes Mr. Engel.