“Bloomberg”: West cannot allow Kosovo to disintegrate

“more than two decades since NATO entered the war to stop ethnic cleansing in Kosovo, the Balkan region is again in danger. The escalation of tensions between the Kosovo government and the country's ethnic Serb minority have raised the prospect of renewed war that could attract neighbouring Serbia and endanger the 3,700 NATO troops still deployed in Kosovo”, Bloomberg writes.

Further in analysis, “with Western governments focused on Ukraine, the longstanding Kosovo- Serbia may look like a distraction, but ignoring the problem would be a fatal error”.

“The US and Europe must put greater pressure on both sides to return to the negotiating table and avoid another Balkan war before it starts”.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008. Serbia refuses to recognise Kosovo as a sovereign state and has supported the efforts of ethnic Serbs living in the country's north to resist the authority of the central government in Pristina. A 2013 European Union-brokered agreement requires Kosovo to allow a degree of self-rule for ethnic Serb communities. However, Prime Minister Albin Kurti opposes this as long as the Serbian government in Belgrade denies Kosovo's right to exist”, the American medium writes, telegraphy broadcast.

The crash intensified last autumn, when the Kosovo government began implementing the agreement on removing Serbia's illegal license plates with acronyms of Kosovo cities. Politics prompted the massive resignations of ethnic Serbs serving in local government, including about 600 police officers. Residents in Kosovo's majority Serb areas set up barricades; When authorities began arresting protesters, Serbia raised military alarms and threatened to intervene. Under pressure from Western officials last month, Serbian President Aleksandar Vuciq persuaded protesters to remove the barricades, but tensions have remained”.

This medium writes that the “European Union has set a deadline by March for Kosovo and Serbia to reach an agreement on normalising relations. While prospects for success seem dim, the alternative is worse. Failed negotiations would encourage beneficiaries from both sides to promote sectarian passions for political gains. As was true during the Balkan wars of the 1990s, even low-level clashes could rapidly escalate into full-scale ethnic conflict, this time with thousands of NATO troops found in the middle. Such enemies would further exacerbate relations between the West and Russia, which is seeking to boost its influence on Serbia and prevent its EU integration”.

“Europe cannot afford another war. Prevention of one would require increased engagement in the region and support on all sides to resume dialogue. Western diplomats must pressure Kurt to suspend policies seen as provocative by the Kosovo Serb minority until Serbs stop attacks on police and other government officials”.

Test says “The EU should rule out advancing Serbia's bid for membership in the union until Belgrade engages for a timeline for recognition of Kosovo's sovereignty. For its part, the US must make clear to Kosovo leaders that NATO's readiness to keep its forces on the ground is not indefinitely. Continued Western military support for Kosovo must be conditioned by signs of progress towards a peaceful solution granting Serb communities greater self-rule”.

For decades, Balkan nations have struggled to save a history of divisions and disputes. Lasting Western diplomacy is necessary to avoid another war in the region and start building a more hopeful future for his people”, the American medium writes.