In a significant diplomatic development, Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs and Special Representative to the Western Balkans, Gabriel Escobar, is on a crucial mission to the Balkan region this weekend. Notably, he is accompanying the EU Special Representative Miroslav Lajcak, along with a contingent of senior national security officials hailing from France, Germany, and Italy, including Emmanuel Bonne, Jens Ploetner, and Francesco Talo.
The core objective of this diplomatic venture, as articulated by a State Department spokesman to The Pavlovic Today, is to provide substantial impetus to the governments of Kosovo and Serbia. The focus is on encouraging them to “immediately de-escalate tensions and make Concrete Progress on commitments they made under the Normalization Agreement,” a crucial framework that has been agreed in Ohrid through the EU-facilitated dialogue.
The Pavlovic Today has been informed that the United States remains a stalwart advocate of the EU-facilitated dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, considering it as the “only path” toward forging a peaceful and productive relationship between Pristina and Belgrade.
“Both countries’ futures are in European institutions; an EU-facilitated process is the only path forward,” a spokesperson emphasized.
“We expect the governments of Kosovo and Serbia to engage constructively during these meetings and to re-commit to achieving concrete progress within the EU-facilitated dialogue,” the spokesperson added.
The Pavlovic Today has been told that the United States maintains to be “fully aligned” with the EU and will continue to play an “active role” in support of the dialogue that has been stalled for months.
In a post on Instagram, the President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić described the meeting as “difficult” and expressed anticipation for significant upcoming meetings in Brussels. President Vučić expressed his belief that “we’ll find a way to get out of this crisis.”
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