Antonijevic: Serbia has a constructive approach, which obviously does not suit Pristina

Serbia's position in the negotiations with Pristina is constructive, and Pristina's position represents a big problem because it does not suit it, said Milan Antonijevic, a lawyer, reports B92.

"As Escobar said, you must form the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities (CSM), to draw up the statute and jurisdiction according to the Brussels Agreement. The agreement that is next in line, which is based on what Germany and France have done, which is normalization relationship and which, apparently, Serbia is ready to agree to at this moment. This is good, both for the community in the north and for the enclaves which want peace above all. It removes the possibility of an escalation of the conflict, which does not suit Serbia, and especially not the people who live in Kosovo," Antonijevic told Tanjug.

He stated that the statements made by Albin Kurti and other officials in Pristina were clearly not aimed at calming tensions but at dissuading Belgrade from staying at the negotiating table.

"Obviously, a constructive approach does not suit Pristina. I don't know why Serbia's desire to negotiate, to make constructive proposals, to act in a way that leads to the normalization of relations is being ignored in such a way. Why should the decision of the Pristina authorities, who also signed the Brussels Agreement, not be implemented, and who guaranteed the formation of a Community of Serb-majority municipalities? Then we have issues of property, the missing, the protection of cultural assets of the SOC," Antonijevic says.

In response to the statement that the President of Serbia will hold consultations with the government, NGO sector and citizens, he assessed that anyone who wants an escalation of the conflict while sitting in Pristina or Belgrade does not wish well, and that finally all political differences should be put aside and negotiations must take place.

"We had a dialogue in 2016, I believe that it was not easy even for the president to sit with us and openly discuss all issues. This must and can happen and I believe that maturity must exist in all political parties, if there is a desire to open such a dialogue and we see from the president's announcements that it exists," he said.

He said that when it comes to the Franco-German plan, nothing is known yet.

"I think a part of that agreement concerns economic support for the region, primarily the north, but also for the rest of the region, and that is very significant. I believe that the European Union will also make a contribution from its side, it is good that the Italians are joining in," he said. Antonijevic added that the Italian position from the beginning of the nineties until now has been very constructive towards Serbia and the region.

He pointed out that he did not know what the talks between Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and the five officials were like yesterday, but he assessed that these were things about which one day books would be written.

"Let us get out of the frozen conflict, the constant cloud that can bring conflicts, and deal with some other and better issues. First of all, to rehabilitate everything that is happening in Kosovska Mitrovica that is related to floods. I think that is much more significant", said Antonijevic.

He stated that it was too early to talk about whether yesterday's meeting between President Vucic and the five officials was a turning point when it came to the future of Kosovo.

"The statute of the future CSM community hides the key to sustainability, the quality of life of everyone in Kosovo, not only Serbian, but also other minorities, as well as the Albanian majority," Antonijevic concluded.