Bilcik and Nemec: There will be consequences if the violence is not stopped and the dialogue is not continued

Members of the European Parliament Vladimir Bilcik and Matjaz Nemec said that the EU did not tolerate the actions of Pristina, but was trying to bridge the differences between Serbia and Kosovo and calm passions, stressing that clear messages were being sent that the Pristina side, like all "players in the region", would face with negative consequences if the violence was not stopped and the dialogue on all issues, including the CSM, was not continued, Blic reports.

This is how they answered the question of how long the EU will tolerate Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti's persistent refusal to form the CSM and how to resolve the situation in the north of Kosovo.

"The only way forward is a peaceful dialogue. This is not about tolerance of actions, but about trying to see how far we are able to bridge differences and calm passions. The EU, but also the Parliament, must play a proactive role in this matter and we must not fall into apathy that all efforts were futile. In this regard, the EU is now politically united and sends a very clear message to Pristina as well that the players in the region will face negative consequences if the violence is not stopped and dialogue continues on all issues, including the CSM," Bilcik and Nemec said in an interview for Blic.

They assessed that the establishment of the CSM is part of the agreement and a perennial source of tension and expressed the hope that the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina would soon lead to a permanent solution.

The parliamentarians called on both sides in Kosovo to calm tensions and stop any form of violence.

"We believe that the course of further developments depends on how well we are able to convey the message to the people that they will not be left alone. As parliamentarians, we call on both sides to unconditionally de-escalate and calm tensions. Especially now when Serbia is grieving and it is obvious that the only thing people are asking her is that there will be no more violence," they say.

They state that the European Parliament fully supports the EU-sponsored dialogue.

"After the last political statements, it is clear that the EU has mechanisms available to ensure the cooperation of all parties," they said.

Bilcik and Nemec believe that it is possible to reach an agreement between Serbia and Kosovo by the end of the year.

"If nothing else, we should not lack optimism now. Even when we look at similar, complex situations between two sides, we often see that more visible progress has been made when both sides, with the help of the international community, have succeeded, even at the most critical moments, to remember that consensus is possible. We are optimistic and, yes, we can reach an agreement and more visible progress by the end of the year," Bilcik and Nemec concluded.