The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, said that he believes that the Basic Agreement between Kosovo and Serbia is an advancement towards mutual recognition between the two states.

“We believe that the full normalization of relations requires mutual recognition at the heart of the agreement, as well as respect for the rights of minorities in both states,” he said in a video message sent to the 11th edition of the Forum of Mannheim, organized by the initiative of the students of Mannheim University in Germany, which was published by the Government of Kosovo on March 12.

On February 27 in Brussels, the parties agreed on the EU proposal, entitled “Agreement towards normalization between Kosovo and Serbia”.

Kurti stated after the meeting that he was ready to sign this agreement immediately, but the president of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, was not ready.
“I hope that Serbia’s refusal to sign the proposal in Brussels is not an indication that it does not agree with the content. Every day we demonstrate our creativity and constructiveness”, Kurti said in the March 12 video.

On March 2, an official of the European Union, during a meeting with journalists, said that Kurti proposed that the document be signed, but the high representative of the EU, Josep Borrell, made it clear that the EU did not intend the meeting in this way, because according to him, the agreement should also include the annex with the deadlines for its implementation.

The new round of dialogue is scheduled to be held on March 18 in Ohrid, North Macedonia, and according to the EU, the main goal now is for the parties to reach agreement on a plan and modalities for the implementation of the European proposal.

Since 2011, Kosovo and Serbia have been conducting negotiations to achieve full normalization of relations under the mediation of the EU.

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