Clark: Belgrade-Pristina Agreement Useful if Chinese, Russian Influence Lessens

Wesley Clark (Foto: Beta/Wikimedia/Ed Schipul,Houston, TX, US)

Former NATO supreme commander Wesley Clark has said that the agreement on economic normalization between Belgrade and Pristina could be highly useful, but only if the influence of China and Russia in the region is reduced.

Clark told the Voice of America on Oct. 2 that he considered any opportunity for negotiation, especially under U.S. auspices, a step forward, just like he believed that any possibility to take measures with a view to economic development to be a positive circumstance. However, he noted that the matter at hand was almost two decades old, riddled with difficulties and still far from a solution.

Big foreign investments sometimes come with political strings, Clark added.

The retired U.S. general said he was an close follower of the pattern of foreign investment coming into Serbia from Russia, China and certain other countries, and of their political aftereffects, noting that he believed that the government in Pristina should take heed of the same when adopting its policies.

Asked to rate the approach of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, often dubbed the "four-pillar support policy," (Washington, Brussels, Beijing and Moscow), Clark said this may be feasible for Serbia, but only if Vucic can control the influence of foreign investors using security structures.

When Russia and China invest, they expect certain political concessions in return. This approach is problematic from the standpoint of the European Union, too, he added.