The purchase also marked a significant shift in Serbia’s foreign policy and security stance, away from Russia and towards the West. Belgrade’s ongoing relationship with Moscow, including weapons deals, has been a thorn in the side of the EU, even more so since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
“Vucic has said very openly and confidently that he has his partners [in the Council of Europe governments] who will prevent accession in the end”, the source added.
While France’s opposition can be explained, at least in part, by the jet sale, Italy’s opposition is a little more difficult to understand. Rome recognises Kosovo, has close ties with neighbouring Albania, and has no known deals with Belgrade.
When asked to comment on the situation, a former British government official told Euractiv that it is true that “Macron and Scholz have gone off Kurti.” “Italy wants to stay on the same page as Germany and France – the big players,” the former official added.
Euractiv contacted the French and Italian foreign ministries to ask why they opposed or hesitated about Kosovo’s accession to the Council of Europe but received no response despite multiple reminders.
Euractiv also contacted the office of Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Kosovo’s Foreign Ministry to ask if they knew of the issue and what steps were being taken to resolve it, but no response was received.
Efforts on hold
To speed up the accession process, Kosovo’s government had promised several measures earlier this year.
But with its efforts stalling now, “Kosovo has put the promised liberalisation on hold for the time being,” the source said. “They would have to waste a lot of political credit on this.”
Kosovo is also due to hold elections in 2025, and issues such as same-sex unions, among the proposed liberalisations, could prove politically costly.
As for what would help unblock the situation, Germany still wants Kosovo to establish the Association of Serb Municipalities, for which the EU’s special envoy to the region, Miroslav Lajcak, presented a plan in the autumn of 2023.
“As soon as this step has been taken, a vote in the [Council of Europe’s] Committee of Ministers can be put on the agenda with sufficient prospect of a 2/3 majority among the member states entitled to vote,” a spokesperson of the foreign ministry told Euractiv.
The creation of the association is not a formal condition for joining the Strasbourg-based human rights organisation, and Pristina remains hesitant, fearing it would violate the constitution or give too much power to Belgrade, which it says is trying to destabilise the country.
[Edited by Daniel Eck]
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Publish date : 2024-09-24 22:04:00
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