The US and the European Union told Kosovo on Wednesday to make concessions in the dispute with Serbs in the north of the country or face “consequences”. The warning came after US and European envoys wrapped up their visits to Kosovo and Serbia to calm tensions that erupted into violence last week, injuring dozens of NATO peacekeepers and Serbian protesters from northern Kosovo.
The violence occurred after Kosovo authorities installed ethnic Albanian mayors in municipal offices. The mayors were elected on the basis of a turnout of only 3.5 percent after the majority Serbs in that region boycotted the local elections.
‘Actions could have consequences’
American envoy to the Western Balkans Gabriel Escobar he said that Kosovo must give greater autonomy to municipalities with a majority Serb population if it wants to move closer to joining NATO and the EU. “Actions taken or not taken could have some consequences that will affect parts of the relationship between Kosovo and the US, I don’t want to get into that,” Escobar told Kosovo media on Tuesday before leaving for Belgrade.
He and the EU Miroslav Lajčak they did not further clarify what other consequences Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s government may face if it does not agree to their demands.
“I don’t think these things are solved by pressure and mentioning consequences or even sanctions,” Kurti told reporters on Wednesday. “We have challenges with EU and US envoys, but our bilateral relations with the EU and the US are excellent.” Lajcak said Monday that the envoys presented proposals to Kurti to de-escalate the situation in northern Kosovo, adding that they had a “long, honest and difficult discussion.”
They called Kurti to withdraw the mayors
The US and the EU called on Kurti to remove the mayors from office and to withdraw the special police units that helped install the mayors in the northern municipalities. They also called for new elections in the north, with Serb participation, while urging Kosovo to implement a 2013 agreement that would have created an association of Serb municipalities to give the community greater autonomy.
President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani she told Reuters that new elections could be held in those communities if 20 percent of residents signed a petition demanding those elections. A senior Kosovo official told Reuters that Western nations, which have vehemently advocated for the country’s independence since it officially severed ties with Serbia, had warned Kurti that Kosovo could face multiple punitive measures.
Last week, Washington canceled the country’s participation in US-led military exercises. EU foreign affairs spokesman Peter Stano said that Lajčak will report on the situation in Kosovo to the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, who will then consult with EU member states.
He said he would “only then discuss potential next steps or measures depending on whether the two sides take sincere and immediate steps to de-escalate the situation or not.”
NATO has about 4,000 troops in Kosovo and has ordered an additional 700 in response to the flare-up of violence.
