Philips: Turkey's reactions to Kosovo Embassy in Jerusalem ʹ efforts to expand influence

Kosovo opened its embassy in Jerusalem on Sunday, boosting the reactions of Palestinian authority, several Arab League and Turkish countries, which called on Kosovo leaders “to give up this step, as it said, irresponsible”.

American analyst David Phillips, professor at Columbia University, said in a conversation about Voice of America that Turkey's stance on the whereabouts of the Kosovo Embassy is simply part of a broader manipulation of it and an effort to suppress Kosovo's self-rule and sovereignty.

“Kosovo can make its decisions, it is not a US colony or the EU or Turkey, it should act in its national interest. Frankly, Turkey does not care about Kosovo and wants to use it for political and economic purposes. This false controversy over the embassy's whereabouts is only one way Turkey will project its influence and power, and on this basis Kosovo must reject Turkey's demands. Turkey is not acting in Kosovo's national interest, it is pursuing an Islamic agenda and should be recognised as such”, Philips said.

On February 1st, Kosovo and Israel established diplomatic relations, which was part of the reconciliation reached under an agreement on economic normalisation between Kosovo and Serbia on September 4th at the White House, in the presence of former US President Donald Trump.

It is a logical stream of opening the embassy in Jerusalem because it was part of a package of the deal in Washington so it was also crowned with the opening of the embassy. It has been controversial, especially from some countries which do not have good reports with Israel, such as Turkey in the past, although these two countries have had very close relations and very close co-operation, but this is an issue -- a decision of a sovereign state”, said former Kosovo Ambassador to Turkey Avni Spahiu.

Turkey ranks third among the biggest investors in Kosovo. Analysts believe that reactions about the opening of the embassy in Israel will have no impact on bilateral Kosovo relations -- Turkey.

What's important is Pristina and its relations with the United States, and it is important that Albin Kurti's new government, in formation, act in a way that advances Kosovo's interests in economic, trade and security terms. I don't see Turkey attracting its investments, this is not a reasonable” perspective, said Mr. Philips.

“I hope there will be no deterioration of relations with Turkey, I understand there will be a kind of cold in these reports, but we consider Turkey a partner country, a friend country that has helped Kosovo in the past and continues to do so, but this is not an act that goes against Turkey. It is an act within Kosovo's agenda to have international recognition, and Israel constitutes a very important state for Kosovo, given the international circumstances, i.”, Spahiu said.

Philips, says Kosovo would make a big mistake if it was subjected to Turkey's pressure.

“Turkey has been in a campaign to expand its influence in the region for years and it does so by exporting Islam, adopting commercial wealth and making threats. Why should the Kosovo government submit to pressure from Turkey? It must act in a way that the people of Kosovo think is in the interests of the country, it must work closely with the United States to complete the” decision, Phillips says.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry said Sunday that Kosovo's leaders “have acted contrary to the established parameters of the peace process, including relevant UN resolutions on the status of Jerusalem and undermining the vision of a two-state solution and peace hopes in the region”.

But, Philips says that this argument is unstable by underlining that the issue of Jerusalem must be resolved through Israeli talks, Palestine, and that Kosovo can make the necessary adjustments after the end of this process.

Kosovo became the third country to open its diplomatic mission to this city, a move that followed bilateral recognition with Israel in September 2020, with the support of the United States of America. Part of the pledges to that agreement was that of Serbia to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, but that has not yet happened.

The European Union regretted Kosovo's decision as well.

“The EU would have much more power if it had moved ahead with visa liberalisation for Kosovo, if there were not five member states that insist stubbornly on non-recognition of Kosovo. So what the EU has to say about this issue is not really important, nor is Turkey's view relevant”, Professor Phillips said.

At the end of 2017, former American President Donald Trump announced his government's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and in May 2018 the embassy in that city opened. Guatemala is the second country to move the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. / VOA