The US hopes Kosovo and Serbia will reach an agreement on license plates peacefully in the coming days, adding to the hints that various crucial decisions could be expected over the coming weeks.
The spokesperson of the US Department of State, Ned Price, said that both Washington’s envoy for the Western Balkans, Gabriel Escobar, and the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, are committed to both countries resolving the disputes.
“We will continue to support the EU dialogue. We will continue to be partners for both Kosovo and Serbia in the hope that they can resolve this issue peacefully in the coming days,” said Price.
The government of Kosovo is planning to implement an already-postponed decision to require all cars to display Kosovo-issued number plates. This decision would also impact some in the ethnic-Serb majority north who have refused to do so because they do not recognise the country’s sovereignty, despite incentives such as tax and fee breaks.
Prime Minister Albin Kurti is now under pressure to postpone the decision, due to come into force after 31 October, until a solution that Belgrade accepts is found. This is despite Serbia being a separate country lacking jurisdiction in Kosovo, much less over government decisions relating to number plates.
A few days ago, Escobar called for the deadline set by the Kosovo government for the pre-registration of vehicles with RKS license plates to be postponed for ten months, adding that it would be good if the government’s response were positive.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Interior, Nora Fetoshi, said that the interest of Serbian converting their license plates is increasing.
“We are continuing our campaign with the aim of informing each citizen about the procedures and reliefs that come out of this process, thus facilitating their access to information through SMS communication in the Serbian language. While the information campaign continues, citizens’ interest in registering cars and returning license plates to RKS has increased in recent days,” Fetoshi told Klankosova.tv.
But in terms of tensions between the two countries, Escobar reiterated that the US supports the dialogue for the normalisation of relations, mediated by the European Union. So far, 11 years of dialogue has yielded little in the way of results.
However, Escobar also said an agreement with Serbia could be on the table in weeks.
“I have heard my European colleagues say this is a matter of weeks and not years. For an agreement, for the way forward. Taking into account the context of what is happening, everyone must take responsibility to create stability, not only in Europe but also in the region”, he stated on Kanal 10.
After the meeting, Kurti also spoke of his readiness to continue the dialogue, reach agreements, and push forward concrete proposals.
“Kosovo has shown itself as a constructive party in the dialogue. We are ready for and dedicated to reaching legally binding agreements for the normalisation of relations, with the bilateral recognition at its centre,” he said, according to Danas.rs.
Meanwhile, Kosovo is also hoping for movement on the issue of visa liberalisation, despite the recent goalpost shifting from France, Spain, the Netherlands, and Sweden.
