Sorensen breaks the ice: Can there be progress in the Dialogue if Bislimi lacks legitimacy?

The preparatory round of dialogue, during which Peter Sorensen for the first time hosted separate meetings in Brussels with delegations from Pristina and Belgrade, offers little promise. The EU Special Representative for Dialogue is soon planning a trilateral meeting. However, beyond the question of which topic both sides would even agree to discuss at this moment, there's the open issue of whether Besnik Bislimi, the Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo in a caretaker capacity, has the legitimacy to represent Pristina's positions as the chief negotiator.

Written by: Dusica Radeka Djordjevic

The Danish diplomat has broken the ice—not Greenlandic, but Brussels'. In the position he assumed on February 1 from Miroslav Lajcák, Sorensen met today with Belgrade’s chief negotiator Petar Petkovic and yesterday with Pristina’s main negotiator Besnik Bislimi.

After the meeting with Bislimi, Sorensen stated that a wide range of issues important for the normalization of relations were on the table and added that he plans to soon host a trilateral meeting.

Bislimi stirred up the otherwise frozen dialogue with his statement that he raised several important issues with Sorensen, including the topic of Albanians in the "Presevo Valley."

"We heard Bislimi yesterday bringing up alleged topics like Presevo and Bujanovac, but these are not topics of the dialogue. It is clear what the topics are: the issue of Kosovo and Metohija, the position of the Serbian people, the formation of the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities—what we can do to reach compromise solutions for peace and stability in Kosovo, which are necessary for both Serbs and Albanians. The issues of Presevo and Bujanovac pertain to Central Serbia and cannot be part of the dialogue, even though Pristina keeps trying to push them. That is not a dialogue topic, and I told Sorensen that—he understood," Petkovic stated today after the meeting in Brussels.

According to Stefan Surlic, assistant professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade, the constant use of the "Presevo Valley" and the status of Albanians in southern Serbia is primarily a tool for domestic political use in Kosovo. Surlic believes that Pristina is obstructing the dialogue process because the current government lacks the legitimacy to make any major political concessions in the normalization process.

"This interim period is being used to promote topics for internal political gain—like the constant 'card' of the 'Presevo Valley' and the status of Albanians in southern Serbia—even though this has never been a topic of normalization nor accepted by Brussels, and has not been presented as a problematic issue warranting discussion. The key issue remains the status of the Serbian community and the formation of the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities. Even Sorensen himself avoids this topic, aware that the political climate is unfavorable both in Pristina and Belgrade for any meaningful progress," Surlic told Kosovo Online.

Bislimi’s trip to Brussels has been met with criticism from both the opposition and analysts in Pristina, who question his legitimacy to represent Kosovo.

ABK MP Time Kadrijaj stated that in a time of political crisis and a lack of new institutions following the elections, neither Bislimi nor anyone else from the current government has the legitimacy to represent Kosovo in the dialogue.

Former ambassador Alma Lama also argued that until a new government is formed based on the February 9 elections, no Kosovan official has the legitimacy to participate in the dialogue. Lama even criticized the European Union for inviting the Kosovan side under these circumstances, according to Kosova Press.

Surlic emphasized that Bislimi lacks the authority, capacity, and legitimacy to make any major decisions in the normalization process. The government in Pristina is in a caretaker mandate, and Surlic sees no space or interest—especially from the Self-Determination Movement—for moving forward in the normalization process.

"On the contrary, it suits them to maintain their stance of asserting sovereignty in the north through violent measures, to show and prove every day that they are fighting for that sovereignty," Surlic said. He added that normalization is not even on the table for opposition parties, should they manage to form a government in the future, as it continues to be portrayed as something imposed by the EU and unnecessary.

Political analyst Artan Muhaxhiri also stated that the capacity in which Bislimi represents Kosovo is a very important issue.

"Legitimacy is also crucial because Kosovo currently lacks a functioning parliament, and Mr. Bislimi cannot provide them with any information or act rationally in the dialogue. This meeting in Brussels was only a formality meant to create the appearance that the dialogue continues, but it carries no real power or influence because we have no new government or parliament. Thus, Bislimi’s influence and power are minimal, and he cannot make any important decisions in this political context," Muhaxhiri told Kosovo Online.

He believes that neither Belgrade nor Pristina has the will to improve the quality of the dialogue and that the individual meetings between Bislimi and Petkovic with Sorensen in Brussels were pure formalities.

"These meetings were merely an introduction for Mr. Sorensen, but I believe he will quickly grasp the context and complexity of this dialogue," Muhaxhiri said.

One of the topics Sorensen is expected to insist on in the renewed dialogue, according to Surlic, is the economy and free trade, given that there is currently only one crossing—Merdare—through which Serbian goods can pass.

"The economy is suffering significantly, so I believe that will be one of the key issues Sorensen will focus on. Also, this area requires very minor concessions and very little political will, and achieving freedom of movement—at least for goods—could be presented as a major success," Surlic said.

Yesterday, Bislimi stated that he raised several topics during his meeting with Sorensen, including integrated border management, where he claimed there are significant delays on Serbia’s part in fulfilling obligations.

On the other hand, Petar Petkovic said today that during his meeting with the EU Special Representative for Dialogue, he presented a list of 50 specific escalatory actions by Pristina and highlighted the extent of persecution against Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija by Kosovan institutions and police. He added that the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities (CSM) is the key issue for halting the persecution and achieving de-escalation, and that it represents the "backbone of the dialogue."