Kosovo Parliament Rejects Scrapping Serbia Talks

Opposition calls for Kosovo to suspend dialogue with Serbia have failed to win over a majority of MPs in the assembly.

Petrit Collaku

Pristina

Three opposition parties in parliament had urged suspension of the dialogue with Serbia, claiming it was against the national interest and that recent agreements threatened Kosovo's sovereignty.

But after six hours of debate on Thursday, the opposition request for a suspension of talks was defeated by 46 to 37 votes. Two MPs abstained.

During the debate, the biggest opposition party, the Democratic League of Kosovo, LDK, accused the government of having ignored parliament in reaching a number of agreements.

The party said any such agreements should have been ratified by parliament.

The nationalist Vetevendosje [Self-determination] movement, Kosovo's second biggest opposition party, was equally critical.

The movement's MPs said it feared that future agreements would do even more harm to Kosovo, as they would relate directly to the question of Kosovo’s territory.

Leader Albin Kurti said that the government had effectively conceded that Kosovo's "independence and the sovereignty are not consolidated.

“This contradicts the government’s insistence that independence and sovereignty are not violated by the agreements,” Kurti added.

Ardian Gjini, from the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, AAK, stated that Kosovo had not presented its interests in the ongoing dialogue and only Serbia stood to benefit.

“Kosovo today does not pursue its strategic interests, at least not through those negotiations. It is not proving that it is following its interests,” Gjini said.

He claimed that Kosovo had entered the dialogue unprepared.

Prime Minister Hashim Thaci responded by reminding the MPs that Kosovo had started the dialogue with Serbia as it had been obliged to do so.

“This technical dialogue is... an obligation from the UN and from the European Union," the Prime Minister said.

Thaci added that the recent agreements with Serbia aimed to improve the lives of ordinary citizens on both sides.

“The dialogue is strongly supported by US government, which together with the EU is a guarantor of this process and of the execution of those agreements,” Thaci noted.

On July 2, Kosovo and Serbia agreed on issues to do with greater freedom of movement, the civil registry and mutual acceptance of university diplomas. The deals followed several round of discussions held since March 2011, mediated by the EU.

The next round of talks, expected to be held by the end of month, will discuss energy, telecommunications, cadastre and customs stamps.