Kosovo PM on agenda, hopes for next Serbia meeting

Kosovo's prime minister on Sunday reaffirmed his country's stance that talks with Serbia to normalise relations have to end in mutual recognition.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti held video talks mediated by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, aimed at resuscitating the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue process, which been frozen since November 2018.

They agreed on setting up a face-to-face meeting in Brussels later this week.

"We are entering this final phase of the dialogue to reach mutual recognition and normalization of relations between our two countries and this was the position that I presented," Hoti said.

"I expect (...) the next meeting on Thursday in Brussels to start the process in good spirits," he added.

Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in 2008, around a decade after Belgrade sent troops into its former territory to crush an uprising by ethnic Albanian separatists.

Serbia refuses to recognize Kosovo’s statehood, and tensions have simmered ever since.

In talks on Friday, Vucic and Hoti held firm to their positions.

Vucic said the EU-backed process will be “meaningless” if they focus on whether Belgrade should recognize Kosovo’s independence; Hoti said “mutual recognition between the two countries is the only way to normalize relations.”

He said on Sunday a normalisation of ties was important not only for Serbia and Kosovo, but "for the countries in the region and for the stability of the EU in general."

(Representative Image)