Kosovo and Serbia – what sort of talks?
Kosovo will have to curtail its rhetoric on the issue of status and recognition in order for talks with Serbia to succeed
- Ian Bancroft
- guardian.co.uk, Sunday 26 September 2010 12.00 BST
Kosovans celebrate independence in 2008. As of 3 September 2010, 70 out of 192 UN member states have formally recognised the Republic of Kosovo as an independent state. Photograph: Dimitar Dilkoff/AFP/Getty Images
Serbia's president and Kosovo's prime minister have met separately with Baroness Ashton, the EU's high representative for foreign affairs, to discuss possible future talks between the two.
While Kosovo – having unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in 2008 – has rejected any discussions over its status, Serbia insists that all issues remain open and subject to negotiation. If dialogue on technical issues is to help create the conditions for securing a sustainable solution to the Kosovo question, as is widely hoped, then the political and diplomatic framework for such talks must emphasise the need for compromise.
The proposed agenda for talks, as presented by the EU's enlargement commissioner, includes a range of practical issues such as "co-operation in border protection, customs, trade and economy, transport, telecommunications, care for historical and cultural heritage and the fight against organised crime".
Kosovo claims that the resolution approved by the UN general assembly on 9 September – after Serbia harmonised its position with the EU – constitutes indirect recognition of its independence. Indeed, the prime minister, Hashim Thaçi, has gone so far as to declare that the resolution "determines that any consultations with Serbia will take place only as two equal, independent, and sovereign states ... [and that] such co-operation will be part of efforts to build new interstate relations" – an interpretation that Serbia vehemently rejects and one that threatens to complicate the prospects for successful dialogue.
The role of mediator is likely to provide another sticking point. Though Serbia has conceded that the EU should lead a process of dialogue, it is also keen for the UN to play a decisive role.
Kosovo, however, favours an EU-US led process. It fears that UN involvement would imply its continued acceptance of UN security council resolution 1244, revitalise Unmik as an influential political actor, and increase the relevance of the UN general assembly (where only 70 member states recognise its independence) and the UN security council (where Russia and China both hold veto powers). It is, however, the six-point plan of the UN secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, that provides the strongest basis for securing agreement on matters pertaining to customs, the judiciary and policing, particularly in the north of Kosovo.
For both Serbia and Kosovo, the status question will continue to have an important impact on domestic politics. With general elections in Kosovo scheduled for late next year, the question of Kosovo's sovereignty will continue to be a pivotal issue. While most Kosovan parties support purely technical talks with Serbia, Albin Kurti, the leader of the Vetëvendosje (Self-Determination) movement, has publicly opposed any talks on the grounds that they would "contribute to chances of division along ethnic lines", and has instead proposed a union with Albania.
Kurti – who plans to stand in the 2011 elections – was recently voted Kosovo's best leader in a poll conducted by Kosovo's Foreign Policy Club; partly because he remains unblemished by elected office. The growing popularity of his political platforms, however, will only serve to further constrain Kosovo's scope for negotiation and compromise.
Serbia, meanwhile, will hold elections in 2012, if not before. The main opposition party, the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), led by Tomislav Nikolic, and the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS), led by former prime minister Vojislav Kostunica, recently reached an agreement that the policy according to which Serbia would be compelled to seek membership of the European Union should be abandoned.
The inherent contradictions of the current governing coalition's insistence on simultaneously pursuing EU membership and opposing Kosovo's independence have become increasingly apparent in recent weeks, with influential EU member states insisting that these goals are incompatible.
Though a majority of Serbia's citizens currently support membership of the EU, the SNS-DSS conclusions are designed to draw attention to the new dilemma facing all political parties – namely, what price are they willing to pay in terms of Kosovo in order to advance Serbia's European integration?
In order to create the necessary political space for talks to both proceed and achieve tangible outcomes, the international community – especially advocates of Kosovo's independence – need to exert greater diplomatic pressure on Kosovo to curtail its rhetoric concerning the issues of recognition, de facto or otherwise.
For the sake of all Kosovo's citizens, it is important that progress be made on key technical matters – particularly the fight against organised crime and the opening-up of economic ties. A sustainable, mutually-acceptable solution, however, will require further concessions from both sides, including a possible special status for the north of Kosovo and additional safeguards that go beyond those originally outlined in the Ahtisaari plan.
- guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2010
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/sep/26/kosovo-serbia-talks
