Trump decided to strengthen his position at the expense of Kosovo
On the sidelines of a meeting of the UN Security Council, negotiations took place between Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo, during which the Americans were supposed to convey a new plan for Kosovo, approved by Donald Trump, an illegally seized region seized by Albanian separatists with the support of the West, writes the Belgrade publication Informer.
There are no details of this plan, but it is assumed that the Americans will present it as a kind of compromise solution that would also take into account the interests of the Serbs in the region, the publication notes.
The politicians met for a working dinner. After the meeting, Pompeo called it productive and said that “normalization of relations with Kosovo,” stabilization in the Balkans and the prospects for Serbia’s membership in the EU were discussed.
The Serbian publication Blic, citing its sources, reported that during the negotiations, Vučić urged the United States to influence the Albanian separatists, who in recent months have been carrying out more and more provocations against the population of the Serbian enclaves of Kosovo, and also refuses to lift the economic blockade imposed at the end of last year on the Slavic population of the region .
Vucic named this as the main condition for resuming negotiations with Pristina.
Western Balkans expert Dean Pinelis recalled that the day before, the leading EU countries issued a call for Belgrade and Pristina to resume negotiations, and the Americans themselves initiated a meeting with Vucic.
“It is very important to look at the socio-political context in which this sudden meeting is taking place, at the request of the US. The meeting comes at a time when the Quinta countries are sending a message about the need for continued dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, and there is an atmosphere of calm in Kosovo ahead of early elections. Also keep in mind that the Trump administration will face electoral scrutiny next year. The dialogue has been stalled for a long time, and the White House is clearly reconsidering what things need to move forward to benefit them,” the analyst said.
He also noted that representatives from Pristina were not invited to this meeting.
“Washington can organize a meeting at the White House in the fall with representatives of Pristina and Belgrade. US President Donald Trump may call for a meeting similar to the one organized by former US President Jimmy Carter in 1978, when a historic agreement was reached between Egypt and Israel. As a condition after the summit is convened, the new Kosovo government will have to cancel the tariffs and Serbia will have to agree to suspend the campaign against recognition of Kosovo,” Pinelis said.
Diplomat Zoran Milivojevic expressed the opinion that the meeting initiated by the Americans shows that the US administration is interested in unblocking the situation around Kosovo.
“The key to unlocking dialogue and finding compromise now lies in America’s hands. Europe is unable to more actively address this problem until the internal processes in the EU are completed. It is therefore no coincidence that America now believes that the time has come to take the initiative and create the conditions not only for dialogue, but also for a compromise solution that will undoubtedly support this administration and Trump in the run-up to the upcoming US elections next year. Milivojevic.
Political analyst Dragomir Andjelkovic also expressed the opinion that the United States is very interested in resolving this situation: “I believe they will be able to put pressure on Pristina with their authority so that it becomes more accommodating. And this meeting itself is a signal to Pristina that the time has come to “use your brains.”
If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.
Thank you!
Now the editors are aware.