8 hours agoBritish Professor: Kurt and Vuciq are benefiting from tensions
Periskopi(a year ago)
(a year ago)For more than a year now, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Serbia's president, Aleksandar Vuciq, have not met face to face at the European helm. An interest in achieving results under the dialogue professor from College London, Eric Gordy, doesn't see it in either of the leaders. Gordy even says [...]
An interest in achieving results under the dialogue professor from College London, Eric Gordy, doesn't see it in either of the leaders.
Gordy even says that both are benefiting from the tensions that are developing on the ground.
According to him, Vuciqi is at this point interested in having developments in Kosovo in order to shift attention from protests in Serbia.
They actually don't seem interested in making a deal, they seem happier creating tensions because they're using it to generate political support. There is a reason such events are happening when there are powerful political protests in Serbia. Vuciki is interested in drawing attention to domestic problems in Serbia with the problems of Serbs in Kosovo. But I find it hard to understand why Kurt is acting the same as Vuciq for raising tensions when he could develop open dialogue with local Serbs, he says.
Gordy does not expect greater involvement by the US dialogue, despite the fact that Donald Trump during the first administration has brokered an agreement for economic normalisation between Kosovo and Serbia.
Meanwhile, the knower of Western Balkan issues estimates that with the EU's mediation dialogue stalled.
You can see this with the so-called Washington Agreement, he moved things to reach that deal. He even promoted a handful of parliamentary state in Pristina in order to establish a government that would sign that agreement. The agreement has the signatures of two individuals who were not in the quality of the heads of state and the US who brokered did not figure anywhere as guarantors of the agreement. They agreed to some points that are not vital interests for either side. They agreed on side agreements that are not vital as well; where they will have their embassy in Israel, and even there they write about the rights of sexual minorities where I believe neither side has respected them enough. That agreement was more a show for media to make it appear Trump is reaching something in foreign policy. If the United States does not come with a comprehensive regional initiative, then I do not see progress in dialogue. I don't think there's any sign of the United States moving in that direction. The negotiation process will depend heavily on the EU, which has stalled. They are pushing a certain balance on Belgrade's side because they love Serbia's lithium”, Professor Egric Gordy said to tv1.
Kosovo and Serbia have reached agreement on the Brussels agreement in February 2023, and the Ohrid Annex in March of that year, but the agreements have not found implementation.
