European Union seeks additional measures from Kosovo for deployment to the north, European Union urges additional measures from Kosovo for deployment in the north

By Deutsche Welle

The European Union requires additional actions by the Kosovo government in terms of stressing the situation in northern Kosovo. But the EU is willing to impose punitive measures on Serbia as well if it does not take action required by the union. EU spokesman Peter Stano said Thursday in Brussels that the punitive measures imposed on Kosovo are returnable, and that depends on the way Pristina does, but Belgrade also approaches extending the situation and returning to normal dialogue processes.

“What we've recently done in light of tensions that occurred in the north is setting some measures against the Kosovo government due to the inability to act in a European manner towards imposing and taking important steps in this direction. If member states of the European Union seek something like this we will also set the necessary measures against Serbia, always, if the bloc's member states assess that in the current conditions and context of the recent crisis, Serbia is doing nothing to lower tensions”, spokesman Stano said.

Prime Minister Kurti's Reaction

On July 10th, following an agreement reached in Bratislava between Kosovo's chief negotiator, Besnik Bislimi and European envoy for Kosovo-Serbia dialogue Miroslav Lajcak, Kosovo police cut its 50% presence in municipal facilities in northern Kosovo. Therefore, Prime Minister Albin Kurti called on the European Union to remove the measures, as he called them, the unfair sanctions against Kosovo”, while, reiterated that the “government is open to holding new elections in the country's north”. ” We are doing all we can and know, but it would take that our European partners and allies as soon as they improve their attitude towards Kosovo, as a democratic and progressive Republic like Kosovo deserves to be helped with all they can and not have punitive measures against it”, Prime Minister Kurti said.

Preventive diplomacy Required

Five days ago, meanwhile, European and American diplomats -- ten heads of commissions for foreign relations and 56 deputies -- in a letter sent to European diplomacy chief Josep Borrell and US Secretary of State Antony Blanken respectively -- called for preventive diplomacy, balance and non-recuracy of past mistakes. Those in the letter stressed Serbia's lack of pressure, following tensions in northern Kosovo.

Regarding the letter of so many politicians, EU spokesman Peter Stano said the European Union's “external policy defines its member states”. “As regards this issue, raised by 56 signatories, MPs from several member states and several third countries, is that European Union policies are unanimously established by the 27 member states, as defined and required by their own governments. So we have thousands of parliamentarians in the European Union, so the European Union's position and actions about foreign policy are unanimously determined by the decisions of the 27-nation bloc's 27 governments”, spokesman Stano said.

The Kosovo government has started working on drafting an administrative directive that would enable through a petition, the dismissal of Albanian mayors from Serb-run northern municipalities, Leposavih, Zubin Potok, Zvechaan and North Mitrovica. Prime Minister Albin Kurti says the best way to call for new elections in the north is through the law on local self-government, which enables citizens of relevant municipalities to download their heads through petition. We are open to new elections through Article 72 of the local government law. There has also been a working group that will make regulation of the technical administrative issues of the provisions of this article and this law, and now we expect their work”, says Prime Minister Kurti.

Early elections in the four municipalities in Kosovo's Serb-run north have been constantly sought by the international community as one of the key conditions for the suspension of the situation in the north. As long as they do not develop, the European Union continues to maintain punitive measures against Kosovo, which include: the temporary suspension of the work of troops created under the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, Kosovo's failure to obtain high-level meetings and the suspension of bilateral visits.