Department of State: We expect the fulfillment of earlier agreements and the formation of the ZSO

The US expects Serbia and Kosovo to fulfill everything agreed in the previous negotiations, including the formation of the Community of Municipalities with a Serbian majority, the State Department told the Voice of America this evening in response to a question about the implementation of what was agreed in Ohrid.

Representatives of Serbia and Kosovo exactly one month ago in North Macedonia, with the mediation of the EU and the support of the USA, reached a verbal agreement on the annex for the implementation of the previously accepted European plan for the normalization of Serbia-Kosovo, but one of the main points is the beginning of the formation of the Community of Serbian Municipalities ( ZSO), remained the main stumbling block.

“Our focus is on the implementation of the agreement on the normalization of relations between the two countries, in order to help them develop more peaceful, predictable relations as neighbors, which will enable greater stability, security and prosperity in the region. The US and the EU expect both sides to fulfill their obligations and implement earlier agreements from the dialogue, including the Community of Municipalities with a Serbian majority, which was confirmed by the two leaders at the March 18 meeting in Ohrid,” the State Department’s written response states.

It is added that the USA remains actively engaged in supporting Serbia and Kosovo in their implementation.

Although the ZSO was agreed upon by the Brussels Agreement in 2013, and confirmed by the European plan and the Ohrid annex, there has been no progress on this issue in the past month.

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti (Albin) recently stated that “previous agreements with Serbia cannot be avoided”, but that he will make sure that the ZSO is not “the third level of government in Kosovo”.

On the other hand, Belgrade demands the formation of the ZSO as a condition for the participation of Serbs in the local elections in the north of Kosovo.

According to the Ohrid annex, the two sides were supposed to support the Declaration on Missing Persons.

The EU spokesman, Peter Stano, stated at the beginning of April that the heads of the negotiating teams agreed on the positions on the draft of the declaration, and the draft should be confirmed by high-level officials of the two sides, at the next meeting, announced for May 2.

The task that Serbia and Kosovo, with the help of the EU, form a joint committee for monitoring the normalization agreement, which is mentioned in the annex, was fulfilled today, on the day of the expiry of the 30-day deadline for this, the EU announced.

“The joint monitoring committee will be chaired by the EU’s special representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue and other regional issues in the Western Balkans, Miroslav Lajčak. “Kosovo will be represented by its ambassador in Brussels, Agron Bajrami, and Serbia by the chief negotiator, Petar Petković,” the EU announcement states.

The EU states that the committee’s duties will be defined at a meeting that will follow the high-level meeting on May 2 in Brussels.