Prime Minister Edi Rama declared today that “the creation of the association of Serbian municipalities in Kosovo is the key to finally open the door to the international affirmation of the Republic of Kosovo and its recognition by all, its seat in the United Nations and all international forums and mutual recognition with Serbia”.

In a press conference with journalists, Rama said that “the situation in the north of Kosovo is unfortunately taking on the proportions of a political tragedy for the Republic of Kosovo. The statements of our strategic allies regarding this situation are more and more alarming, and frankly, the reason for the reluctance of the Kosovo authorities to de-escalate a situation where Kosovo is clearly lost every day, every hour is incomprehensible.”

“Serbia is doing what it has done other times, while Kosovo is doing something it has never done before, and as never before it is being universally blamed by all the strategic allies of the Albanian nation. In the conditions when the relations of the allies with Kosovo are taking on more and more ultimatum tones and when the return to the previous situation is in danger of taking an increasingly long time if Kosovo and I wish, I pray that it does not happen, it will be sanctioned for the stay I am here to share with you an unknown fact until today”, Rama underlined.

Prime Minister Rama said that “I have known for a long time that the Gordian knot of the dialogue would be the association of municipalities with a Serbian majority, my conviction is that none of the parties want the association and will do their best to postpone it endlessly keeping the crisis open with some kind of political or technical artifice”.

He informed that a day ago he forwarded to President Macron and Chancellor Scholz a draft for the Association of Serbian Municipalities, about which he informed the President of the EC, Charles Michel and the American side.

“It is a draft worked out by top-level American and European experts for a long time, which was done just in case this day would come. This day when the parties, and in this case for me incomprehensible is the position of Kosovo and not of Serbia, which I repeat is doing what it has done on other occasions, the parties are not able to agree on who should write this text”, Rama added.

He said that “this is a confidential document, which undoubtedly does not pretend to be the ideal solution, but I assure you that it is a document of the highest international level that takes into account all the reasons for the creation of the association and definitely takes into account that the association is part of the organization of life in the Republic of Kosovo by addressing all the recommendations or conclusions of the Constitutional Court of Kosovo”.

“I wish and hope that this material is useful to take the dialogue to another level and to make the parties talk about concrete things, things related to the successful conclusion of the dialogue and not to talk to themselves and about themselves. This was what I wanted to share publicly, the reason why I share it today is because the situation is becoming alarming and I cannot remain a spectator watching Kosovo shrink, shrink and shrink in the eyes of those who created the state of Kosovo”, Rama was quoted as saying.

/k.s/