Brussels, 27 February 2023
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, yesterday, in Brussels, at the invitation of the High Representative of the European Union, held the sixth high-level meeting in the framework of the dialogue process.
Before the start of the official meeting with the High Representative of the EU, Borrell, Prime Minister Kurti held a meeting with the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the United States for European and Eurasian Affairs and at the same time the special envoy of the United States of America for the Western Balkans. Gabriel Escobar. He talked with him about the expectations from today’s meeting. The Prime Minister thanked Mr. Escobar for the support and engagement of the United States of America in the dialogue process.
During the day, after the bilateral meeting with the High Representative, Borrell, and the EU emissary Miroslav Lajçak, the trilateral meeting took place.
Prime Minister Kurti expressed his willingness to sign the Basic Agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, as proposed by the European Union and supported by Germany, France, Italy and the United States of America. However, the Serbian side refused to sign.
In the trilateral meeting, it was agreed that the text of the EU Proposal will remain unchanged, even though Serbia has not yet shown itself ready to sign it. The parties will begin negotiations on the implementation plan. This plan should contain concrete details and be comprehensive, provide effectiveness in implementation and be sequenced in a balanced manner.
The agreement reached last night is between the parties who recognize each other as equals, and was reached on the basis of respect for the sovereign equality of states, respect for their independence, autonomy and territorial integrity. The agreement, among other things, ensures the mutual recognition of documents and state symbols between Kosovo and Serbia, the establishment of permanent missions and guarantees that neither party represents or acts on behalf of the other in the international sphere. With this agreement, Serbia is also obliged not to hinder or oppose the membership of the Republic of Kosovo in any international organization.
The complete text of the agreement is published in its entirety on the official website of the EU External Action Service. The next high-level political meeting is expected to be held in March.
Last modified: February 28, 2023