Hill puts it open: We have problems with Prime Minister Kurti, if we can still consider him a partner

US Ambassador to Belgrade Christopher Hill said today that Western countries have made it clear that Kosovo will face consequences due to developments in the country's north, stressing that the problems are with Prime Minister Albin Kurti. In an interview with the Serbian Voice of America service, he said Mr. Kurti has disagreed with Western demands for lowering tensions by drawing special police units and mayors from the north.

The following interview is edited to be more summary and clear.

Voice of America: The situation in Kosovo has not yet been resolved. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Gabriel Escobar and EU Special Envoy for Dialogue Miroslav Lajcak presented the proposals to Belgrade and Pristina for extending the situation, new elections in which Serbs will participate, and a return to dialogue on normalisation. What response have you received from Kosovo Prime Minister Aljbin Kurti, ready to accept?

Christopher Hill: I think we have a problem with Mr. Kurti, he's not willing to admit it. I think we have some very basic problems with him if we can still consider him a partner. But I leave this decision to our embassy in Pristina.

Voice of America: He said he is not ready for the expansion and organisation of new elections?

Christopher Hill: Enlargement is essential and I think we've succeeded in this regard in the last few days. As you know, a few days ago, we had a real jam there. NATO troops there. And recently, they were playing sports games with Kosovo Serbs. So I think there's been a suspension. There are tensions, of course, from the Serbian side, and expectations by the European Union and the United States are for Kosovo to take a step in that direction. One of them is for special police to pull out of the north. Also, mayors must leave municipal buildings, and this should happen at some point. And the third thing a little harder is if you can have new choices. The Serbian side clearly said that important is the establishment of the Serbian Communist Association, which is still a problem for Mr. Kurti. Because everyone else realizes that it's necessary.

Voice of America: Mr. Escobar said Serbs should participate in local elections without preconditions. You mentioned the Association of Serb-run municipalities. Do you believe Serbs will participate in elections if it is not founded?

Christopher Hill: I would not like to enter into the details of the negotiations, but I think Serbs are concerned about participating in local elections that would take place under the same circumstances as previous ones that boycotted them. I think it takes some changes, I don't want to talk about how far they're going and how they're gonna get there. I know there will be many discussions with the Serb community in Kosovo on how to move forward. We must bear in mind that the purpose of these elections is that those chosen to serve the community in northern Kosovo, which is mainly Serb.

Voice of America: Can you imagine Serbs participating in elections without Association?

Christopher Hill: I think that association is essential for northern Kosovo. And most people seem to understand that. Association is something we promised. It's something we've decided to have. But maybe it will be necessary to somehow explain to the Serb community what it means? It means the ability to have schools, to control schools, to have texts that people enjoy at schools, hospital facilities, doctors, medical care. I think all these elements have been understood and much work has to be done to implement them. And I think we need good will from all sides. and of course, we hope to receive this from the authorities in Pristina.

Voice of America: What would be the consequences for both sides if they failed to meet the requirements?

Christopher Hill: For example, when a senior American general visited Serbia, we told Kosovo we would not do the military training we planned.

Voice of America: But did Mr. Kurt even step forward?

Christopher Hill: I have to say and apologize for the expression, it's a process. And it won't happen in a moment, but in a time period. But I think Mr. Kurti has been fully informed by our ambassador to Pristina, by Mr. Lajcak and Mr. Escobar, that he will have to make some changes if he wants to count on us as friend and partner. I don't remember ever seeing such deep divisions in the relationship between Pristina and Washington.

Voice of America: What do you expect from Mr. (Aleksandar) Vuchciq in this process? And what would be the result if expectations were not met?

Christopher Hill: We consider him a good partner, he and his government are good partners in the process. And we hope it will. We would like him to do what he can to relax the situation, and we see signs of application already. That's very positive. I was present at the talks (with Escobar, Vucic and Lajcak) the following night and can tell you that they went beyond the current crisis in Kosovo. I think there is a consensus with authorities in Serbia on how to move forward, doing things together. I hope that the people of Serbia will understand that we want to co-operate much more politically, economically, in the security field, which is one of the reasons for General Hawkinson's visit. We are very interested in improving relations with Serbia at least as much as people and the government are interested in it in Serbia. We feel that Serbia is becoming an increasingly good partner for us.

Voice of America: Is there unity within ʹQuintinʹ as to the positions of Kosovo's prime minister? We saw that the U.S. was very specific about the consequences, but others did not follow.

Christopher Hill: What we have said about Kosovo is that there will be consequences for our bilateral relations. It was a very strong statement what the Secretary (Antony) Blinken said condemning Mr. Kurti's actions to send special police to the north and fail to work and communicate properly with partners. These are serious accusations against Mr. Kurti and I hope that Mr. Kurt can see that he must act in a way that is different from what he has done. And so I'm not going to talk to him anymore.

Voice of America: One of the triggers of the Kosovo crisis was local elections. Turnout was extremely low, about 3.5 percent. But the West did not oppose the results of those elections. Does it seem wrong?

Christopher Hill: You know, you'd have to ask other people if it was the wrong decision. I certainly have my opinion of elections and let me answer that question more as an analyst than an ambassador. I think some people expected turnout to be low, but they did not expect it to be only 3.75 percent. And I think it became clear very quickly, I would say to everyone that with such participation you don't have to move on. It's obvious that these data bothered many people, of course, I am one of them.

Voice of America: It seems that the European proposal for normalisation of relations did not bring much progress, tensions on the ground are the same if not bigger. Do you consider the agreements failed? Is there any need to find a new approach?

Christopher Hill: My opinion is, and I want to stress this because I'm not a negotiator, that all elements of the deal that should be on the table are there. For the Serb side, association is needed, and this is important because the fact that there is no Association lacks confidence in the international community. Serbia must make the decision to recognise Kosovo documents and not prevent Kosovo from membership in regional organisations, etc. ... It is clear to me that it may be said it does not work, but giving up is not an option. And I have to say one more thing: what I've seen in other negotiations, but not here, it's a good tone of conversation. In the case of dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, you are trying to shift things to another level compared to what they are in right now, but I think harsh rhetoric is damaging the process.

Voice of America: Do you expect Mr. Vucic to recognise Kosovo's independence?

Christopher Hill: I think he's willing to do what he said to achieve normalisation and that's very important. And this precedes all future stages of co-operation. Let's start over, try to realise the association, recognition of Kosovo documents. This is important at this point.