Kosovo, Serbia leaders to hold talks as tensions persist
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 1 February 2017 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Kosovo, Serbia leaders to hold talks as tensions persist, 1 February 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5975a4cc4.html [accessed 5 June 2023] |
| Comments | All reference to Kosovo should be understood in full compliance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244. |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
February 01, 2017
Kosovar Prime Minister Isa Mustafa (right), Kosovar President Hashim Thaci (l) and European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini attend talks on establishing normal relations between Serbia and Kosovo in Brussels on January 24.
The presidents and prime ministers of Serbia and Kosovo are due to meet on February 1 for a new round of talks aimed at improving their relations, which are still strained nearly two decades after a deadly conflict.
The talks, hosted by EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini in Brussels, follow a recent spike in tensions between the two countries.
The last such meeting was held on January 24, when the leaders of Kosovo and Serbia agreed to hold further high-level talks on establishing normal relations.
The friction between Belgrade and Pristina increased in early January with the detention in France of former Kosovar Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj, a guerrilla commander in Kosovo's 1998-99 war for independence from Belgrade, on war crimes charges.
It increased days later when a Serbian train with signs reading "Kosovo is Serbia" was turned back from the border with Kosovo.
Kosovar leaders have accused Belgrade of trying to destabilize the country and plotting to take control of an ethnic-Serbian-dominated enclave in northern Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008 and is recognized by 114 countries. Serbia accused Kosovo of seeking to provoke war.
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
