Kurti: Kosovo and Serbia should normalize relations

2025-12-24 15:16:05, Kosova & Bota CNA

Kosovo and Serbia should “normalize” relations, Kosovo’s acting Prime Minister Albin Kurti said in an interview with the AFP news agency, days before snap parliamentary elections. However, he said the process is difficult.

Kurti has been in power since 2021 and two years after taking power, he reached the Agreement on the path towards normalization of relations and the Annex for its implementation, but the agreement has not yet been implemented.

"We must normalize relations with Serbia," Kurti said.

"But normalizing relations with a neighbor who has an authoritarian regime and who does not recognize you, and also does not accept the crimes committed during the war, is very difficult," he added.

Tensions between the two countries are constantly high, and a return to unrest would provide Russia with the means to destabilize Kosovo.

"We have an agreement for normalization," Kurti said, referring to the 2023 agreement, reached under the mediation of the European Union.

"We must implement it, which means mutual recognition between states, at least de facto recognition."

This agreement, with 11 articles, among other things, provides for a level of self-management for the Serbian community in Kosovo, mutual recognition of state symbols, so that Serbia does not block Kosovo's membership in international organizations, and requires Pristina and Belgrade to also implement all previous agreements reached during the dialogue.

But, to resume dialogue, Serbia "must hand over Milan Radoicic," Kurti said, referring to the former deputy leader of the Serbian List, who has claimed responsibility for the armed attack on the Kosovo Police in Banjska in 2023.

Kurti said he hopes that "the EU, France and Germany will put pressure" on Serbia to hand over Radoicic, against whom and several other individuals Kosovo has indicted for the attack in Banjska.

Since September 2023, a few days before the armed attack in Banjska, no high-level round has been held in Brussels, while talks at the level of chief negotiators have continued, but have not produced any agreement.

Serbia has also not severed relations with Russia, despite the war in Ukraine, and Belgrade depends on Russian energy.

"There are many connections" between the two states, Kurti said, and if Russia decides to destabilize the region, "in its march towards Western Europe, it can count on Serbia as an ally. And this is worrying for our state. But we are working with our partners to prevent such a thing."

Kosovo, which hopes to join NATO, recently lifted tariffs on American products and agreed to accept up to 50 migrants from third countries who would be deported by the US. So far, only one migrant has arrived in Kosovo.

" We are not asking for any financial assistance in return," Kurti said. "We are doing this to help the US, which is our partner, ally and friend," added Kurti, who did not rule out the possibility of reaching similar agreements with European countries. /REL