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The European Union’s special envoy for the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, Miroslav Lajcak, said on Wednesday that he believed there was momentum for a meeting in Brussels between the leaders of the two countries, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.
He made these statements at a press conference in Pristina, shortly before leaving for northern Kosovo.
“I am engaged in individual meetings so that the next meeting has the results we want to see,” Lajcak said of the possibility of a Kurti-Vucic meeting as part of the dialogue, hoping that such a meeting would take place in July, before the start. of summer vacation.
These two leaders have met twice over the past year as part of the dialogue.
Lajçak said that during his three-day visit to Kosovo he met with leaders of the government and the opposition to discuss dialogue.
According to him, political unity is very important for moving the dialogue forward, emphasizing the “statements of the opposition in support of the dialogue and the commitments of the Government.” [së Kosovë] in this process ”.
Among other things, Lajçak spoke about the importance of clarifying the fate of the missing and said that he hopes that the documents will be approved, which are working working groups.
“We should not stop until the fate of all the missing is clarified,” Lajçak said, among other things.
During the war in Kosovo, about 13,000 people were killed, over 800,000 were displaced, and about 6,000 disappeared.
More than 1,600 people are still missing to this day. Hundreds of bodies of slain Kosovo Albanians have been found in mass graves in Serbia.
Lajçak said that the roadmap shows concrete steps for the implementation of agreements and puts an end to non-transparent practices, so that all cities in Kosovo have the same obligations.
Asked about the issue of the Association of Serb-majority municipalities, Lajcaku said that the approved agreements should be implemented.
“It is a commitment that Kosovo has accepted, including the approval in the Assembly, there is a principle of international law that says that what has been agreed, must be implemented. This is not required by Brussels, this is what the parties have agreed on. “he said for the Association, adding that for Serbia this is a key issue in the dialogue.
The formation of the Association is foreseen by an agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, signed in Brussels, in 2013.
Two years later, the two countries reached an additional agreement on its establishment, but the Constitutional Court of Kosovo found that the principles for it are not in accordance with the Constitution of Kosovo.
The Court, however, said that they could be harmonized with a legal act of the Government of Kosovo.
Kosovo and Serbia have been in negotiations for the normalization of relations since 2011. The parties have reached dozens of agreements in various fields, but the implementation of most of them has stalled.
“I understand the importance of visas”
During the conference, Lajçak said that he understands the importance of visa liberalization for the citizens of Kosovo, and that this issue has never received more attention in the EU institutions.
“Believe me, I understand how important this issue is for you and I am with you. “Kosovo deserves visa liberalization, this should have happened,” he said.
Kosovo is the only country in the Western Balkans that does not enjoy visa liberalization with the EU.
Visa liberalization for Kosovo was the topic of discussion at the EU-Western Balkans Summit, held on 23 June.
The Government of Kosovo has said that it has met every criterion out of a total of 95 that the EU has set in the roadmap for liberalization.
However, the process has been repeatedly hampered by some EU member states, especially France, which has expressed reservations about the free movement of Kosovars. Radio Free Europe
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