Lajcak: We Expect Kosovo, Serbia to Meet All of Their Agreed Obligations

The European Union’s special representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue, Miroslav Lajcak (BETAPHOTO/MILOS MISKOV)

EU special representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue Miroslav Lajcak said in Belgrade, on Oct. 21, that Serbia and Kosovo were expected to start fulfilling their obligations arising from the Ohrid Agreement, as well as all earlier agreements.

After a meeting between the “Big Five” and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Lajcak described it as lengthy and important. “We have expressed our concerns over the negative path in the process of normalization between Serbia and Kosovo, which is directly connected to their European path,” Lajcak said.

The EU representative said the purpose of the visit was to find a way to achieve tangible progress in the process of implementing the Ohrid Agreement, and de-escalate the situation after recent events. The Serbian president, Aleksandar Vucic, said the meeting with the U.S. and EU representatives was “difficult,” and that he expected important meetings in Brussels in the days to come.

The delegation included U.S. and EU special representatives for the Western Balkans Gabriel Escobar and Miroslav Lajcak, foreign policy advisers to the French president and the German chancellor, Emmanuel Bonne and Jens Ploetner, respectively, and a diplomatic aide to the Italian prime minister, Alessandro Catane. They first visited Pristina to meet with Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, after which Lajcak said that they arrived with a plan that would be presented to both leaders, but disclosed no further details.