Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti has urged the US and EU to increase pressure on Serbia to stop its derecognition campaign against Kosovo. Kurti’s call comes after claims by Serbia’s President Alexander Vucic and foreign minister Ivica Dacic that Sierra Leone has withdrawn its recognition of Kosovo.
The Serbian government is responding with intensified derecognition campaigns of Kosovo’s independence to my good will for the partial lifting of the tariff on raw materials imported from Serbia, in order to create the conditions for resuming dialogue and building constructive co-operation relations.
I call on Serbia to stop this offensive and to give up its destructive policies towards Kosovo and its statehood. I also urge relevant international actors, primarily the US and EU, as mediators in the dialogue process, to increase pressure on Serbia to cease hostile policy towards Kosovo.
We have clearly shown that we are willing to have a fair and normal relationship with Serbia but we cannot allow this will to be denigrated.
Last week, Kurti announced his government decided to drop tariffs against Serbian goods in two steps within March, as a gesture of good will and willingness to engage in dialogue. However many stakeholders did not agree with this “partial” move. Serbia, US envoy Richard Grenell, President Thaçi, Kurti’s coalition ally Isa Mustafa all asked for “immediate drop” of tariffs.
