Kurti: “Serbia must recognize Kosovo, but there is no more Balkan mini-Schengen”
At a summit of leaders of the Western Balkans in Tirana, Albania, the “Prime Minister” of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, demanded that the statutory documents of the Central European Free Trade Association (CEFTA) be reviewed, since Kosovo is not listed as an independent state.
In response, Serbian Prime Minister Anna Brnabic gave the separatist a harsh rebuff.
In response to Kurti's attack demanding that Kosovo be recognized by both CEFTA and Serbia, Brnabic replied that the current format is working well and there are no legal arguments to change anything because Kosovo is part of Serbia. The Serbian prime minister reminded Kurti that Kosovo does not recognize the five EU members, that it is not a member of the UN and in this sense definitely cannot have a status different from the existing one.
Kurti responded with a question: “What are you going to do, do you want to occupy us?”
“Do you think we can occupy our own territory?” Brnabic retorted.
“She did not want to admit that Kosovo is an independent and sovereign state,” the Kosovo “prime minister” commented on the verbal spat for Gazeta Express. – I emphasized that Serbia must distance itself from the Milosevic regime and its legacy. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia thirteen years ago, and now is the final moment for Serbia to recognize Kosovo’s independence.”
Also, the head of the separatist cabinet noted that initiatives such as the summit meeting of the heads of the Western Balkans are no longer related to the regional "mini-Schengen" (Donald Trump’s project for the economic integration of the region, supported by Albania, Serbia and North Macedonia and not accepted by Kosovo due to reluctance to be in free space with Serbia - ed.).
“Mini-Schengen no longer exists, there is a common regional market, the next meeting of which will take place in the first half of July. This initiative is an issue that is being considered within the framework of the Berlin process (EU integration platform for the Western Balkans - ed.), with a different name and different coordinates,” Kurti added.
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