Thursday

30th Mar 2023

'Map of southeast Europe is finished,' Germany tells Serbia

Germany has made the strongest public link so far between Serbia's acceptance of Kosovo independence and its EU membership bid, amid speculation that a final deal will involve a new status for the Serb-dominated northern part of Kosovo.

German foreign minister Guido Westerwelle on a visit to Serbia on Thursday (26 August) told students at a speech in Belgrade University that the country has to "face reality" on Kosovo secession.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Become an expert on Europe

Get instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

"A day will come for representatives of Belgrade and Pristina to sit at the same table and speak about the EU. It may now seem like a utopia for you, but it can be achieved. Reconciliation can succeed if you face reality. Independent Kosovo is a reality and the opinion of the International Court of Justice has uniquely confirmed it," he said.

"The map of southeastern Europe has been laid down and completed."

Later in the day following a meeting with Serb Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic, he told press that: "In our view, one can only be a member of the European Union if one aims for co-operation and is prepared to resolve neighbourly difficulties co-operatively."

The Belgrade visit was part of a wide-ranging tour of the western Balkans that will also see the minister visit Pristina on Friday.

The diplomatic peregrination comes amid developments in the International Court of Justice and the UN that could move the Kosovo-Serb conflict into its end-game.

The court last month said that Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence in 2008 did not violate international law.

The UN is expected to discuss in September a draft Serb resolution invalidating the ICJ statement, with Serb foreign minister Vuk Jeremic continuing to talk tough on Thursday, telling reporters after meeting Mr Westerwelle that: "We are ready for a constructive dialogue with everyone, especially our European partners ... but we won't accept any changes [of UN resolution 1244 on Kosovo] that would give Kosovo an independent status."

Experts believe that Serbia is getting ready to make a deal that may involve swapping ethnic-Serb-dominated land in northern Kosovo for ethnic-Albanian-dominated land in southern Serbia and autonomous status for Serb Orthodox churches in Kosovo, however.

"There is a greater sense of political realism on the Kosovo issue today ... to the point that some officials appear to be looking creatively for ways to free Serbia honourably from the burden Kosovo has become," the International Crisis Group, a leading NGO, said in a report on Thursday.

"Neither Pristina nor Belgrade proposes this openly, but officials in both capitals have begun to speak of it quietly."

Another major issue in EU-Serb relations is Serbia's arrest of war crimes indictee Ratko Mladic, widely believed to be hiding in the country.

If Serbia hands over the fugitive, the move could be used as a card to strengthen its hand in the last stages of negotiation on Kosovo and its EU future.

Column

What does China really want? Perhaps we could try asking

Perhaps even more surprising to the West was the fact that the Iran-Saudi Arabia deal was not brokered by the United States, or the European Union, but by the People's Republic of China. Since when was China mediating peace agreements?

Opinion

Biden's 'democracy summit' poses questions for EU identity

From the perspective of international relations, the EU is a rare bird indeed. Theoretically speaking it cannot even exist. The charter of the United Nations, which underlies the current system of global governance, distinguishes between states and organisations of states.

Latest News

  1. Work insecurity: the high cost of ultra-fast grocery deliveries
  2. The overlooked 'crimes against children' ICC arrest warrant
  3. EU approves 2035 phaseout of polluting cars and vans
  4. New measures to shield the EU against money laundering
  5. What does China really want? Perhaps we could try asking
  6. Dear EU, the science is clear: burning wood for energy is bad
  7. Biden's 'democracy summit' poses questions for EU identity
  8. Finnish elections and Hungary's Nato vote in focus This WEEK

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. InformaConnecting Expert Industry-Leaders, Top Suppliers, and Inquiring Buyers all in one space - visit Battery Show Europe.
  2. EFBWWEFBWW and FIEC do not agree to any exemptions to mandatory prior notifications in construction
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersNordic and Baltic ways to prevent gender-based violence
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCSW67: Economic gender equality now! Nordic ways to close the pension gap
  5. Nordic Council of MinistersCSW67: Pushing back the push-back - Nordic solutions to online gender-based violence
  6. Nordic Council of MinistersCSW67: The Nordics are ready to push for gender equality

Join EUobserver

Support quality EU news

Join us