Ahead of Washington Meeting on Kosovo: Belgrade’s Fears and Expectations

Dialogue

The representatives of Kosovo and Serbia are travelling to Washington for a Sept. 4 meeting with more or less the same ideas they have promoted on similar occasions before. Kosovo’s focus lies on mutual recognition, i.e. so-called statutory issues, whereas Serbia doesn’t want to talk about it, preferring other themes, like economic ties and the protection of the Serb population and religious sites in Kosovo. Given the circumstances, no dramatic breakthrough can be expected in resolving the Kosovo crisis, but what both sides do understand is that Washington has taken a keener interest in their relationship, and that they need to respect that.