OPEN LETTER/ Come to the dialogue and listen to me speak, otherwise I will cut off your scholarships, you will rot in prison. Please!

 Kliko këtu për të tjera
Voxpress:

Tensions in the north, Swiss newspaper: Serbian and Kosovar negotiators, secret meetings in Switzerland

2022-12-18 09:59:12Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

Tensions in the north, Swiss newspaper: Serbian and Kosovar negotiators, secret

The situation in the northern part of Kosovo has worsened in the last month. It all started with the dismissal on November 3 of the regional police director in the north, Nenad Gjuric, who had refused to implement the Government's decision to distribute reprimands to drivers who have cars with license plates issued by Serbia.

The Serbs have already mobilized by putting barricades on some roads, thus blocking the access to the two border points of Kosovo with Serbia, Jarinje and Bërnjak. On the other hand, Serbia has threatened to send forces to Kosovo, making an official request to KFOR.

An article by the Swiss newspaper "NZZ am Sonntag" has shown that "Switzerland is mediating discreetly behind the scenes between Serbia and Kosovo and seeks to prevent the conflict from escalating further."

In mid-November, according to NZZ, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) hosted representatives of both countries in Switzerland. "Such a meeting took place a week after the withdrawal of the Serbs from the Kosovar institutions", confirms the spokesperson of the FDFA, Elisa Raggi. For reasons of confidentiality, the FDFA does not want to say exactly where the talks took place.

As the FDFA continues, this meeting was not an isolated incident. Since 2015, Switzerland has supported the European Union, which is responsible for the normalization dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, with its complementary instruments: "The Department for Peace and Human Rights has organized regular meetings attended by representatives of the parties more influential of the two countries".

This discussion away from the public eye is important so that representatives of Kosovo and Serbia can regularly exchange views on political issues and build trust. "This allows discrete direct contact, for example, to prevent the outbreak of violence," FDFA tells NZZ. In addition, the ideas can be tested, which will then be included in the official negotiations, reports Klan Kosova.

Franz Gruter is also concerned about the uncertain situation in the Western Balkans. The National Councilor of the SVP is the chairman of the Committee for Foreign Affairs of the National Council and travels to Kosovo on Monday for two days to see the situation on the ground. "Then I will bring my impressions to Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis", says Gruter. The trip was initiated before the outbreak of recent tensions. Now the visit takes on a special explosiveness.

Gruter will meet with the chairman of the Committee for Foreign Affairs of the Assembly of Kosovo in Pristina. In addition, he is part of the delegation of the head of the Swiss Army, Thomas Sussli, who, like every year before Christmas, visits the "Sëisscoy" troops stationed in Kosovo. Switzerland has participated in the KFOR mission in Kosovo since 1999. There are now 195 Swiss soldiers on the ground.

Gruter says he is very concerned. "This conflict has the potential to escalate relatively quickly." He sees parallels with the situation on the border with Ukraine a year ago. At the time, Russian President Putin had taken his tanks up there. "All of Europe was asleep, no one seriously expected a war." Two months later, Putin bombed Kiev. "It cannot be excluded that the same thing happens in the Balkans and Serbia invades Kosovo with the support of Russia." Therefore he very much welcomes the fact that Switzerland is offering its good offices in this situation.

Not everyone shares Gruter's pessimism. Jean-Hubert Lebet, who was Switzerland's ambassador to Kosovo from 2016 to 2020, does not expect an invasion. "As an ambassador, I experienced such Serbian provocations several times", says Lebet. "It was a bluff every time and I don't see why it should be any different this time."

He says that the risk is too great for Serbia. "NATO will retaliate immediately and Serbia would lose any prospect of integration into the EU."

But how delicate is the situation really? The FDFA refers to a press release issued by the Federal Council on November 23. It says: "At the moment, the situation is stable, but still characterized by volatility."

This assessment is consistent with the fact that although army chief Sussli is sticking to visiting troops in the Western Balkans, the program was changed at short notice. The safety of all participants is the top priority, writes the Department of Defense. "Initially, a visit of the delegation to the north of Kosovo was planned. However, in the background of the current situation, the program has been adapted", writes the newspaper.


Në përputhje me standarded JTI

Video

SHIKO KANALIN NE YOUTUBE
×