Brussels (Photo: PrintScreen YouTube)
The European Union has great expectations of a Joint Belgrade-Pristina Commission on Missing Persons, Peter Sorensen, the European Union's special representative for Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, said on Jan. 23.
Sorensen expects the Commission to make "a significant contribution to clarifying the fate of the missing and to helping close a painful chapter for the families, who have waited far too long for answers." The European External Action Service said in a press release that on Jan. 22 the chief negotiators from Belgrade and Prisina and the EU special representative had held a meeting of the Joint Commission on Missing Persons "for the first time in a trilateral format."
Petar Petkovic, director of the Serbian government's Kosovo and Metohija Office and chief negotiator in technical talks, headed the Belgrade delegation, while chief negotiator Besnik Bislimi headed Pristina's.
The president of Serbia and premier of Kosovo reached agreement on establishing the Commission in their Declaration on Missing Persons of May 2, 2023 in a high-level meeting organized by the EU.
The purpose of the Joint Commission is to oversee the implementation of the Declaration on Missing Persons, "which aims to contribute to shedding light on the fate of the remaining missing persons, which includes persons forcibly disappeared, provide closure to their families and foster lasting reconciliation and peace," according to the statement. In line with its mandate, the Joint Commission will support the International Committee of the Red Cross-chaired "Working Group on Missing Persons' efforts by facilitating the Parties' implementation activities, resolution of any disagreements and by reviewing progress."
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