Drop it now
The failure of the latest round of Belgrade/Pristina talks to reach agreement on an association of Serb municipalities in Kosovo is neither surprising nor particularly discouraging. Mundane as it sounds, this is a delicate issue.
An association is clearly permitted under the Ahtisaari plan, which Belgrade has not accepted but Pristina has pledged to implement. Were it to become more than an a consultative body and acquire executive functions, such an association could come close to creating a Republika Srpska-like governing entity within Kosovo, one that would make it virtually impossible for Pristina to exercise full control over those functions it requires to qualify for EU membership. Pristina needs to make sure that it does not fall into this trap.
Tanjug (via B92 English) quotes Alexandar Vulin, Belgrade’s office chief for Kosovo, as saying Serbia:
simply supports the constitution of an association (of Serb municipalities) that would have the authorities, control and influence over the judiciary, police, education and all aspects important for the life of citizens.
This is a precise description of what no one in the international community should expect the Pristina authorities to accept. It would legitimize, not dissolve, the “parallel” (illegal) Serbian institutions in Kosovo.
To me, there is a simple, first test of what should be permissible for Belgrade within Kosovo: is it also permissible within Serbia? Whatever the Serbs of Kosovo gain in this negotiation should also be available to the Albanian-majority community of Presevo in southern Serbia. That community has nothing like the privileges in the Ahtisaari plan, never mind what Vulin is claiming. Belgrade needs to come to the negotiating table with wants that correspond to what they are willing to offer in analogous circumstances.
Of course the circumstances are not entirely analogous, because Belgrade does not accept Pristina’s authority as sovereign. This is a real problem and should not be ignored, as both the Brussels and Washington prefer. Belgrade’s bold assertion of continuing sovereignty over all of Kosovo conflicts with what Ahtisaari offered. It is wrong for Serbia to ask for the privileges contained in his plan (and then a good deal more) without paying the price of admission.
This phase of the Pristina/Belgrade talks is putting the Pristina authorities in an awkward situation. It is quite clear that no one in the Kosovo government, including its Serb participants, wants to go further than the Ahtisaari plan in accommodating Serbia. Anyone who does is likely to pay a price at the next election. Moreover, there is a real risk that Serbia will use an association of Serb municipalities to pry the southern Serbian enclaves away from their grudging acceptance of Pristina’s limited authority. That’s what Vulin is openly proposing.
No one has asked my advice on these issues, so I am free to state publicly what it would be: going any further than Ahtisaari would be a mistake. Even implementation of Ahtisaari should be conditional on Serbia’s dropping its claim of sovereignty and accepting the plan as a whole, rather than picking off the parts it likes and leaving the parts it doesn’t.
Belgrade can drop its claim of sovereignty elegantly (and silently) by allowing Kosovo to enter the United Nations. This would be a gesture to which Pristina could be expected to respond generously. Belgrade’s sovereignty claim is going to have to be dropped eventually in any event. The EU will never take in another member whose borders are uncertain, as it did to no good effect with Cyprus. Serbia would do best to drop it now. Once that is done, Vulin’s pretension will be voided and the question of the association of Serb municipalities will be far more manageable.
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Cyprus and Kosovo have nothing in commom.Cyprus was illegally invaded and currently illegally occupied Mr.Serwer.As for Northern kosovo and the Presevo valley they should be swapped for one another to end this stalemate.
Af few days ago Sali Berisha stated that Albanbia is going to give all of kosovo albanians citizenships for free access to the EU,SO ONCE Serbia and Kosovo come to a agreement Kosovo will merge with Albania?the serb municipalities are correct not to want to be part of Kosovo.Self determintion is not what the You preached in justifiying kosovo breakway from Serbia?What goes around comes around im afraid.
Ahtisaris plan offers more than in any country has ever offer for minorities absolutely agree with Mr.Serwer that Preserve, Bujanovc Novi Pazar they all should have an Ahtisari plan drafted with the same rights as serbs in Kosovo,if Serbia achieves EU membership than all those minority communities they have to be take seriously without prejudice.
If there was any chance for Serbs to get more in Kosovo, it was destroyed by how Serbs behaved in Bosnia and Herzegovina. No one in his right mind would allow himself such a stupidity in his way toward EU. If Republic of Srpska were to be an example of how to cooperate in its own country and do the things the way they ought to be done that would be another story. Unfortunately all it was lately, namely with Dodik, it was an example on how not to do things. What I would hope for is something similar is something that I hate in the US, which would be redistricting (I think redistricting is something that will one day destroy USA democracy), or something similar to it. Meaning as much as possible votes for Serbs in regionalization (this is thing that hast to be done on Kosovo with or without Serbs) or if Serbs come to sense and ask for a way in which they will get as much as possible members of Kosovo Parlament.
“Whatever the Serbs of Kosovo gain in this negotiation should also be available to the Albanian-majority community of Presevo in southern Serbia”.
This is key. Moreover, it is the only one among realistic solutions that can prove viable on a permanent basis. Of course, it would be ideal if both Serbia and Kosovo adopted a concept based on individual instead of collective (whether ethnic, religious or any other) rights, but the prevailing mentality of people in the Balkans is unfortunately such that the idea will likely remain utopian for the foreseeable future.
Don’t you think Serbia from 2001 has adopted individual instead of communal.they still in contrast to other Balkan countries have substantial minorities within their borders.hungarians,bosniaks etc etc .THe truth of the matter is that I would support a clean break presevo for n.kosovo because at the end of the day conflicts will still arise down the road between these two communities even in a autonomous structure.