Belgrade and Pristina resume talks

As tensions and sporadic clashes continue in Serb-run northern Kosovo, the Kosovo and Serbian governments are set to return to the negotiating table in Brussels on Wednesday.

Teams from Belgrade and Pristina have travelled to Brussels for the eighth round of EU-mediated talks, where they are to discuss border management, international representation of Kosovo and the implementation of the already reached deals.

Brussels is expected to promote a compromise solution to the vexed question of Kosovo’s northern border with Serbia.

This will centre on the idea of so-called Integrated Border Management, IBM, for border crossings, a concept involving all relevant authorities and agencies involved in border security and trade facilitation working in coordination.

Serbia objects to the presence of Kosovo officials on the border, as Belgrade insists it is not a true state border but an «administrative line», separating Serbia proper from what Belgrade still terms a Serbian province.

Borislav Stefanovic, chief of the Serbian negotiating team, said ahead of the talks that giving “attributes of state borders” to “administrative crossings” remains unacceptable for Belgrade, which opposes Kosovo’s independence, proclaimed in 2008.