Serbia working to preserve peace in upcoming Brussels meeting: President

BELGRADE, Serbia

Amid recent border tensions with Kosovo, Serbia’s president said on Monday that he is planning to go to Brussels to maintain peace and stability before an upcoming meeting with the Kosovar premier.

“We don’t threaten anyone. We just want to ensure respect for international rules and international public law norms,” including the 1999 UN Security Council Resolution 1244 and 2013 Brussels Agreement, Aleksandar Vucic told reporters ahead of a meeting slated for Thursday with Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti.

Belgrade is interested in discussing all issues, but more importantly the matter of establishing the Community of Serb Municipalities, Vucic added, referring to a planned association of local administrations in Kosovo with Serb majorities.

“It was understood that these powers would be much larger and broader, that’s why we negotiated, it’s clear what was negotiated,” said the Serbian president.

Vucic said he would have meetings with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and the special representative of the US administration for the Western Balkans, Gabriel Escobar.

Vucic and Kosovo’s premier Kurti both accepted an invitation by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell for a meeting on Aug. 18.

The leaders will meet with Borrell and Miroslav Lajcak, the EU’s special representative for Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, in the EU capital.

Tensions between Belgrade and Pristina escalated in late July ahead of Kosovo’s planned implementation of a new law making it mandatory for everyone, including Serbs living in Kosovo, to have a Kosovar ID card and license plate.

Later, Kosovo announced that it had decided to delay the new measures until Sept. 1.

Vucic called for dialogue to resolve issues with Kosovo.

Launched in 2011, the EU-led Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue aims to normalize relations between the two Balkan countries and find a mutually agreeable solution for their disputes in the framework of a legally binding agreement.

Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia in 2008, with most UN members, including the US, UK, France, Germany, and Türkiye, recognizing it as a separate autonomous country from its neighbor.

Serbia still claims that Kosovo is its territory.

• Albin Kurti
• Aleksandar Vucic
• Serbia Kosovo