The envoy of the United States for the Western Balkans, Gabriel Escobar, began on Tuesday  the meetings in Pristina with the leaders of Kosovo, in the framework of his joint visit with the European envoy for the talks between Kosovo and Serbia, Miroslav Lajcak. Escobar met with the president of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, during the evening he is expected to meet with the leaders of the political parties in the opposition, while on Wednesday he is expected to meet with the prime minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti.

The two envoys after Pristina will also stay in Belgrade in the wake of efforts to mark progress towards an agreement that would avoid tensions on the ground, which followed Serbian reactions to the decision of the Kosovo government to implement reciprocity on the use of documents car identification and license plates. The visit follows last week’s meeting in Brussels between the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti and the Serbian President, Aleksandar Vucic, where no progress was made but with the agreement to continue efforts for a solution.
The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, said on Tuesday in a conversation with the Ambassador of the United States of America in Belgrade, Christopher Hill, that Serbia is serious about finding a solution to the current crisis caused as he said by “unilateral movements of Pristina”, announced the office of the Serbian president.

According to the announcement, the Serbian president told Ambassador Hill that it is important for Pristina to adhere to the agreement that Kosovo special forces can move into northern Kosovo only with the consent of NATO and the mayors of the four municipalities where Serbs live.

The talks in Brussels, which began 11 years ago, aim at an agreement to normalize relations between the two countries. A study published today by the Democratic Institute of Kosovo calls for Kosovo and Serbia to focus on reaching a final agreement which would consequently resolve all technical issues.

/Klara Ruci/