A year after the Kosovo-Serbia agreement in Washington, the United States says it continues to work "with Serbia and Kosovo to implement their commitments in support of the goal of comprehensive normalization of relations", but the tone of Washington has changed with the administration of democratic new, since President Joe Bideb, who took office, emphasized "mutual recognition".
Mr. Biden has said "that the principle on which the talks should be built should be mutual recognition".
This was reaffirmed in the State Department's comments on the one-year anniversary of the agreement, in response to a request from the Serbian Voice of America Service.
"The United States stands ready to support work toward a comprehensive, binding normalization agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, centered on mutual recognition, that lays the foundation for lasting cooperation and prosperity," a State Department spokesman said.
The spokesman also said that many elements of the Washington Commitments support the United States' vision for the region, including energy diversification, regional connectivity, support for the moratorium on accessions and withdrawal of recognitions, and the finding and identification of missing persons.
The State Department said the United States hopes the parties will honor the commitments made in Washington last year.
A year ago, Kosovo and Serbia agreed on the economic normalization of relations, at the end of the talks at the White House organized by the former American president Donald Trump.
The former prime minister of Kosovo, Avdullah Hoti, and the president of Serbia, Aleksandër Vucic, signed respectively for their countries.
The agreement paved the way for the recognition of Kosovo by Israel.
The agreement provided for a series of actions for economic normalization, including the feasibility study for Lake Ujman, which lies in the territory of Kosovo and Serbia.
On June 23, the United States delivered to the governments of Kosovo and Serbia the report of the US Department of Energy on the management of the water of this lake.
But the Kosovo parliament failed to pass a resolution on the implementation of the Washington Agreement on economic normalization between Kosovo and Serbia.
Asked if the two countries have shown the necessary commitment to fulfill the commitments provided for in the agreement, the State Department said that the need for full normalization has no expiration date.
"We therefore encourage both sides to prioritize efforts to build political trust through serious and substantive participation in the EU-facilitated dialogue process. We also encourage Kosovo and Serbia to increase cooperation in areas of mutual interest, such as recovery from the pandemic and improving economic and trade relations," the State Department spokesperson said.
Although the agreement was considered a turning point by former President Trump, some analysts say the premise of normalization through shared economic and trade interests was unrealistic.
"The Biden administration is right to focus on mutual recognition. Efforts to normalize economic relations is a worthy goal and a step in the right direction. But what is needed to bring lasting peace and stability to the region is political normalization and mutual recognition," Council on Foreign Relations researcher Charles Kupchan told VOA's Albanian Service on Friday.
According to him, this will require external pressure and relief.
"And most importantly, it will require courage and political determination in both Serbia and Kosovo," he said.
Edward Joseph, a Balkans expert and professor at Johns Hopkins University, says that since the agreement, the gap between Pristina and Belgrade has only deepened, and the reason, he says, is that it avoided the heart of the problem.
"This is a political problem and it is an extremely difficult problem because of the lack of balance. Belgrade has all the superiority", he said in an interview for the Serbian Voice of America Service.
For this to change, says Mr. Joseph, the European countries that have not recognized Kosovo must do so, so that its isolation ends.
He also emphasizes the need for United States engagement.
Paul McCarthy of the American Republican Institute agrees that not much progress has been made, attributing this to political transitions mainly in the United States, but also in Kosovo.
One of the aspects he says can help between the two sides is softening the rhetoric, such as Belgrade's stance that it will never recognize Kosovo.
"I think that softening the extreme positions on both sides and encouraging the diplomacy of Brussels and Washington to soften the rhetoric and then see those areas where there can be progress, is important," he said to the Serbian service of the Voice of America.
The common denominator of the past and current administrations in the United States regarding Kosovo-Serbia relations is that the dialogue must continue. And analysts agree that Washington has an important role to play in its progress./VOA
Information source @BalkanWeb: Read more at: www.botasot.al
