Dacic: There is pressure on Kurti, but what is an "irreversible step" toward the CSM

Former Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic stated today that there is Western pressure on Albin Kurti to take an "irreversible step" toward forming the Community of Serb Municipalities (CSM). However, the "million-dollar question" remains: what exactly is that irreversible step?

"There is pressure to force Kurti to take an irreversible step toward establishing the ASM. What is that step? That's the million-dollar question. Should he submit the draft statute to the Constitutional Court? I'm not sure that's such a big step because the court can simply reject it. There's no guarantee the statute will be accepted," Dacic told TV Prva.

He noted that even this step is unacceptable for Kurti, who claims to have his own proposal instead of the European draft statute.

"He then calls for consultations with the mayors, who are all Albanians. That's the mess we have here. Some Western countries are trying to frame Kurti to at least send the statute to the court," Dacic added.

Whether or not this will happen and whether Kurti can secure entry into the Council of Europe based on this will depend on the determination of the international community, Dacic emphasized.

Knowing Kurti's stubbornness, he expects that a compromise will be reached to allow some decision to "pass."

"In the Parliamentary Assembly, 33 countries supported it, but now they need 31 votes. The result is tight, but if France, Germany, and Italy have reservations, there is no chance it will pass. It's not even on the agenda yet. The Committee of Ministers is scheduled for May 16th and 17th, with voting likely to occur on May 17th," Dacic reminded.

He also emphasized that Kosovo's membership in the Council of Europe is important as it reflects attitudes toward Kosovo's membership in other international organizations.

Dacic pointed out the concentration of various pressures coming from multiple directions on different topics, all converging on Serbia and the Serbian people.

"The target is not just Vucic and the state leadership. Those who say that don't understand that this is about Serbia, not anyone personally," Dacic added.

In this context, regarding the draft resolution on Srebrenica, Dacic said it is unclear when the UN General Assembly will discuss it, but it's expected that the proposal will be presented next week.

He emphasized that the text has not been changed to meet Serbia's expectations and that many didn't anticipate Serbia's resistance.

"We have a tough job ahead of us. This is about principles: how could the Bosnian ambassador to the UN propose a resolution when the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina did not make a decision on it? It's also inconsistent with the UN Charter for the General Assembly to discuss a topic that is on the Security Council's agenda. All previous resolutions have been adopted by consensus, which is absent here, leading to each country individually voicing its issues, resulting in chaos in the international legal order," Dacic emphasized.

Dacic, the newly appointed Minister of Internal Affairs, handed over his former position as Minister of Foreign Affairs to the new head of diplomacy, Marko Djuric, who, he believes, will be successful in this role.

"We've been working together for over 10 years and know each other well. I'm confident he will succeed in that role in the coming period," Dacic said.