Borrell: Vucic Accepted Eu’s Proposal to End Crisis, Kurti Did Not

Aleksandar Vucic, Josep Borrell in Brussels, Nov. 21 2022 (BETAPHOTO/European Council/Olivier Matthys)

European Union High Representative Josep Borrell said in Brussels, on Nov. 21, after lengthy meetings with the leaders of Serbia and Kosovo, that Belgrade had accepted the EU's proposal to end the license plate issue crisis, but that Pristina had not.

After separate meetings and a trilateral sit-down with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovo Premier Albin Kurti, Borrell told reporters that the two sides had not reached agreement on the issue of mandatory replacement of Serbia-issued license plates with Kosovo-issued ones.

Borrell said that the proposal to avoid escalation was laid out and that Vucic accepted that proposal, but that Kurti did not. He added that he expected Pristina to suspend any further steps related to license plate replacement immediately and Belgrade to suspend issuing license plates for towns in Kosovo, including those with the KM designation.

Borrell said he would brief EU member states and partners on the behavior of the two sides and the lack of respect for obligations under international law, noting that this primarily applied to Pristina.

I told the leaders that, if EU accession is their ultimate goal like they say, we expect them to act like it, Borrell said, adding that he hoped both sides would comply with his request to avoid further escalation and a dangerous new crisis. He also said that he had made it clear to both sides that things could not go on as they are and that the vicious circle of crisis and time crunches must stop.