Ischinger: I hope that Kosovo and Serbia will accept the Franco-German initiative

Wolfgang Ischinger, a German diplomat and former European Union Envoy for the status of Kosovo, stated in an interview for Kosovo Online that he hoped "that the Serbs from the north will be encouraged by Belgrade to return to the institutions", and that all the elements of the Brussels Agreement should be honored and implemented by all involved parties.

Many compare the Franco-German proposal for dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia with the "two Germanys" model and your proposal from a few years ago. Do you think that Belgrade and Pristina will accept such a proposal?

I certainly hope they will unless they can come up with a better idea of how to overcome the unresolved status issue.

Serbs from the north of Kosovo have left Kosovo institutions, do you think they will return to the institutions, and when? 

I do hope that Serbs from the North of Kosovo will be strongly encouraged by Belgrade to return to the institutions of Kosovo. Kosovo happens to be the country they live in! 

The Russian Ambassador to Belgrade, Botsan-Kharchenko, recently stated that the Initiative, which you spoke about, was never officially launched on behalf of the "Troika" (EU, USA, and Russia), although it was considered one of the working options?

Regarding my initiative of 2007, it was, of course, fully supported by the EU, and by the US member of the Troika, Ambassador Frank Wiesner. Ambassador Botsan-Kharchenko was not opposed to the proposal and even encouraged me to fly to Moscow, and submit it to Foreign Minister Lavrov. Unfortunately, the Russian government was unable to support the proposal because of the position of the Prime Minister of Serbia who was categorically opposed.

Will Kosovo respect the Brussels Agreement and establish the Community of Serb-Majority Municipalities, and after all these years since the agreement, is it even realistic to establish it?

It is my understanding that all elements of the Brussels Agreement should be respected and implemented by all parties involved.

Is the introduction of sanctions against Russia by Serbia related to the issue of Kosovo, and would the introduction of sanctions facilitate Serbia's position, when it comes to dialogue with Kosovo?

If Serbia wishes to continue on its EU track in a credible fashion, Serbia should make every possible effort to align its foreign policy with the policies of the European Union. This includes the question of sanctions against Russia. The question of sanctions is therefore not so much an issue related to the Belgrade-Pristina relationship but to the Belgrade-Brussels relationship.