Pristina "daydreams about Serbia's recognition"

Source: Tanjug

BELGRADE -- Director of the Serbian Government Office for Kosovo Marko Djuric says that "people should not be fed the illusion about Serbia's recognition of Kosovo."

Marko Djuric in Kosovska Mitrovica (Beta, file)

However, he added, that does not mean that residents in Kosovo and Metohija, both Serbs and Albanians, "should not live together, and live better."
Ethnic Albanians in Kosovo in 2008 unilaterally declared independence, which Serbia considers a violation of its Constitution and territorial integrity.

But Hashim Thaci, who serves as deputy prime minister and foreign minister in the government in Pristina, told the Austrian APA agency he was "convinced that Serbia will in the near future" recognize its southern province as independent.

Reacting to this statement, Djuric said that "the road to normalization is irreversible, while the constant daydreaming about a Serb recognition of Kosovo's independence is a reflection of political immaturity."

"What is worrying is the lack of focus on the real problems of Kosovo and Metohija - unemployment, corruption, and bad inter-ethnic relations," this official observed.

Djuric also advised Thaci to "turn to the reality and take into account the fact that citizens suffer the most from any delays in normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina, which at the same time represents a process to create the conditions for economic development of Kosovo and Metohija."

Thaci told APA on Monday that Serbia's recognition "will not happen tomorrow, but will come in the near future," and noted that Serbia's EU accession and recognition of Kosovo will be tied to one another.

During the same interview, Thaci mentioned "Islamic extremism and the rising influence of Russia" as the biggest threats faced by the Western Balkan region.