Kurti claimed on Monday meanwhile that Borrell was “giving up on the March 2023 deadline” in a EU proposal for a final agreement on the normalisation of relations between Kosovo and Serbia.
But EU spokesperson Peter Stano denied this.
“Every allegation that the EU is giving up on its proposal on normalisation of relation between Kosovo and Serbia, which is supported by Germany, France and the US, is not true,” Stano said.
“The EU continues to fully support this proposal and encourages parties to agree on the text once they are ready to prove to the international community that they are ready to move towards a European solution,” he added.
Kurti’s ally, Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani, supported his claims and accused Borrell of favouring Serbia in the disute.
“What we saw today from Mr. Borrell was blatantly biased, accommodating the aggressor and presenting a completely distorted reality. If Borrell respected the basic principles of neutrality, he would mention to Serbia at least some of the Brussels agreements that have been violated, instead of accusing Kosovo,” Osmani wrote on Facebook.
“Peace and stability cannot be achieved by accommodating those with hegemonic ambitions. But Kosovo will never give up the clear goal of long-term peace and stability as well as law and order throughout its territory,” she added.
The international community expressed concern and disappointment on Monday’s lack of agreement.
A US State Department spokesperson expressed concern about the lack of any agreement on Monday and urged Kurti to work with Borrell and the EU’s special representative for Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, Miroslav Lajcak, to reach a fair compromise.
“Both parties must refrain from undertaking any provocative steps, meet their obligations from the EU-facilitated dialogue and engage constructively in reaching a sustainable solution. The United States calls on Kosovo and Serbia to undertake immediate steps to reduce the tensions,” the spokesperson told Klan Kosova.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Twitter that “we are disappointed that it was not possible to solve the licence plate dispute. Now is the time for responsibility and pragmatic solutions. Escalation must be avoided.”
Stoltenberg added that NATO’s peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, KFOR, will “remain vigilant”.
The head of UNMIK, Caroline Ziadeh, also said that it is necessary “to avoid any escalation that could destabilise the situation on the ground, lead to unintended consequences and jeopardise the hard-won gains of the last decade.”
Serbian President Vucic said on Monday night that he met representatives of Kosovo Serbs and urged restraint.
“We only asked them to be careful, to be calm, to preserve peace and stability, to respond to other people’s arrogance in the way decent people always respond,” Vucic said in a video on Instagram.
