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Reuters
BRUSSELS — Serbian and Kosovar leaders failed to resolve disagreements fueling tensions between their estranged Balkan neighbors at Thursday's talks, but they will meet ahead of a Sept. 1 deadline. We agreed to resume talks.
After several hours of closed-door talks in Brussels between Serbian President Alexander Vucic and Kosovar Prime Minister Albin, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told reporters: "Unfortunately, no agreement has been reached today," he told the delegation. Kurti.
"However, this is not the end of the story. Both leaders agreed that this process must continue and that discussions will resume in the coming days. ' he added.
Tensions between Serbia and Kosovo began this month when Pristina issued a car license issued in Pristina to Serbs living in the north, who do not recognize Kosovar institutions with the support of Belgrade. intensified when he said he would mandate the use of
Kosovar Prime Minister Alvin Kurti agrees to postpone license plate rules until 1 September, under pressure from US and European Union, NATO peacekeepers set up by Serbs After overseeing the removal of the blocked road block, the situation calmed down.
"There is still time until September 1. I will not give up," Borrell said after EU-facilitated negotiations.
Borrell told leaders that with war raging in Europe, now was the time to seek peace and stability, not to speak of long-standing differences.
"This happened at a critical time for Europe," he said. "After Russia's invasion of Ukraine, war has returned to our continent. We are facing a dramatic and very dangerous moment for our continent."
It won independence from Serbia in 2008, almost a decade after a guerrilla uprising against repressive Belgrade rule.
Serbia legally considers Kosovo an integral part of its territory, denying it fueling tensions and conflicts there, and Pristina trampling on the rights of the Serb minority. accuses. Serbs make up 5% of Kosovo's 1.8 million population, 90% of which are Albanians.
NATO has increased its presence in the north of the country, and Reuters witnesses on Thursday saw U.S. and Polish troops patrolling her two roads leading to the border with Serbia. I saw you there
A NATO spokesperson said the Kosovo Armed Forces (KFOR) posture is aimed at enabling peacekeepers to respond quickly to any security challenges.
"KFOR wants to assure everyone that it is ready to intervene if necessary," the spokesperson said. (Reporting by Sabine Siebold, Benoit Van Overstraten, John Chalmers, Fatos Bytyci, Editing by Nick Macfie)
