Hill: Getting to the key moment in the dialogue process

The key issue for Serbia, and I think it is a positive trend, is to negotiate with the EU.

At the time you are negotiating with Kosovo, Serbia is actually talking with the EU about a series of obligations it will take to the Union. Well, now, should I be optimistic about this, we'll see... I think we're close to a key moment in that process and we're going to see how it's going to turn out”, Hill said.

Asked about the implementation and saying conflicting conclusions of negotiators have been heard, Hill said there are often different conclusions, but it is clear that some key issues will be implemented.

One of the most important, and that has been said by the EU and the US, is the need to establish as fast as possible the Association of Serb majority municipalities, Hill stressed.

It's important for several reasons because it's a long-term commitment, it's been 10 years and that's a reason to continue with it. The second is even more important is that the Serb community that has long lived in Kosovo knows what their future is”, the American diplomat confirmed.

Asked whether it is close to forming the Association and whether it will be based on the Brussels Agreement or exclusively on this agreement, and whether this will be a sign that implementation is coming, he replied, “Yes, implementation is coming. The negotiations were difficult, but there is a clear guideline, which is the 2013 Brussels Agreement. Although negotiations will certainly be difficult, the devil is in detail, as they say, and there are many such. But I think we have clear instructions, because of the first six points of the 2013 Brussels Agreement, we know what that community will look like. I don't mean to say that it will be easy, it is clear that people have different ideas about this, but at the end of this process it will become clear how Serbs currently living in difficult conditions in Kosovo should see the future”, the ambassador said.

Commenting on Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti's statements that “should not have autonomy for Serbs”, he said these are difficult issues and that sometimes people say something and then make the whole process difficult.

I believe in mediators, Lajcak and Escobar, that they clearly understand both sides both Kurti and the Serb side. I think there's a consensus for what's coming and what's going to happen. Of course, there are many conversations and dialogue, and if you put it all together in negotiations, it doesn't always look good, but there's a consensus that's bigger than the words”, Hill said.

Asked whether this means that both sides will be constructive, he says there is likely to be a genuine exchange of views and that there is a consensus on both sides that this cannot continue forever but that there should be progress.

Many in Serbia look at this issue of association and say we believe in negotiations, but we need to see the results. We'll see how it's going to turn out, but I think we all understand we're coming at a key moment in this” process, he underlined.

The diplomat also stated that the international community and now the Euro-Atlantic community are facing a difficult and dangerous situation in Ukraine because of Russian aggression.

Big attention is now in Ukraine, for good reason. For example, after Ohrid, Joseph Borell did not have much time to talk about the talks, but he immediately made sure that he returned to the Ukrainian case, which is being defended against Russian aggression. It is a key issue and it is in the interest of all of the issues like Kosovo and the dialogue between Pristina and Belgrade to be resolved in a positive way so that people can focus on what they should do at the moment, which is to help Ukraine protect against aggression”, Hill said.

Regarding the initiative of four countries, the Western Balkans “”, he says the US welcomes all initiatives of countries in the region to discuss common goals and enterprises.

“These four countries want to talk about how to coordinate their foreign policy to be in line with the EU and try to accelerate membership. Of course, those countries are in different stages, but I think it's a commendable effort. Whenever countries sit down to coordinate the situation, to avoid any division, it is always a good initiative. I don't think this is at the expense of any other initiative... There are some positive ones currently developing in the Balkans as far as regional integrations are concerned. For example, the Open Balkans initiative is the most exciting and promising initiative. I'm probably following it and if there's anything more that can be done there and can America” help, Hill said, and added that these are not controversial initiatives.