Hill: U.S. Supports EU Efforts to Arrive at Solution in Serbia-Kosovo Dialogue

Christopher Hill (BETAPHOTO/AMIR HAMZAGIC)

The U.S. ambassador to Serbia, Christopher Hill, said on Sept. 19 that his country was supporting the European Union (EU) in seeking a solution for relations between Kosovo and Serbia, but refused to comment on a plan to set up a new framework for the Serbia-Kosovo dialogue, supported by German and French envoys for the normalization talks.

Ambassador Hill said to reporters that the Kosovo problem “lasts too long, and it’s time for some progress to be made.”

“It’s not up to me to comment on proposals, but I can say that the U.S. supports the EU, working very hard to find a solution acceptable for all, which is not easy,” Hill said.

The German-French proposal for a new negotiating framework, published by albanianpost.com, suggests that in 2023, ten years after the Brussels agreement was signed, Belgrade and Pristina should sign a new normalization agreement, whereby Serbia would “de facto accepts the reality of an independent Kosovo,” without recognizing it formally.

At a later stage, hypothetically in 10 years, when the EU might be ready to expand and let the Western Balkans in, a mutual recognition agreement will be reached as a precondition for Kosovo and Serbia to join the Union.