Docherty: Agreements must be implemented, including the one on the CSM

Great Britain's Secretary of State for Europe, Leo Docherty, told Blic that the country encouraged Kosovo and Serbia to implement previously reached agreements in the dialogue, and one of them concerned the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities.

Docherty points out that the United Kingdom fully supports the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia under the auspices of the EU.

"We want to see an agreement that is comprehensive, final, legally binding and that clearly contributes to regional stability. Most importantly, such an agreement must be acceptable to the citizens of both countries, so that it can bring long-term benefits to them and the entire region. I welcome all the efforts that contribute to making this happen," Docherty said in an interview with Blic.

Regarding the recent events in Kosovo, Docherty added that the leaders of Kosovo and Serbia had to discuss open issues at the table.

"Everyone has a responsibility to maintain the stability of the region. It is crucial that everyone demonstrates maximum restraint, avoids inflammatory rhetoric, and does everything to calm the situation. The leaders of both countries must discuss the differences at the negotiating table - open issues can only be resolved through joint engagement," he added.

According to him, solving international disputes required time and patience, and it did not happen overnight.

"It also requires flexibility, creativity, and a sincere desire to reach a solution. All this should happen at the negotiating table. During the ten years of the dialogue process under the auspices of the EU, we have seen some progress in the relations between Serbia and Kosovo, which have influenced the improvement of the quality of the lives of ordinary citizens. There were also problems, and it happened from time to time that the progress was slow. But it is important to continue working on solving the everyday problems that the citizens of Serbia and Kosovo face. This is something that should be continued, in parallel with the focus on normalization - a relationship between neighbors that benefits everyone, except those who want to grow or profit from divisions," Docherty stressed.

He stated that the United Kingdom and international partners had been encouraging Serbia and Kosovo to reach a comprehensive normalization agreement for a long time.

"Negotiations can last, but constant, unnecessary delays do not help anyone. It is not up to me to dictate the time, but for the sake of people's interests, and in order to release the enormous potential of both countries, I would be glad if the agreement would be reached as soon as possible," Docherty stated.

He added that Kosovo and Serbia had to implement all the agreements, and one of them was to form the CSM.

"We encourage both Kosovo and Serbia to implement previously reached agreements, which result from the dialogue process. One of them concerns the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities. What the CSM could look like is a topic for discussion between the two parties in the dialogue. After all, talks about the CSM should result in a solution acceptable to both sides, which will benefit all citizens, including Kosovo Serbs," he said.

He noted that it should not surprise anyone that Britain supported Kosovo.

"We support independence, as well as their international integration, and we encourage our partners to do the same," he added.

Docherty underlined that Great Britain supported the dialogue and that they were in constant contact with the Quint ambassadors, and the leaders of Serbia and Kosovo.

"The dialogue between Serbia and Kosovo is a process under the auspices of the EU, which is led by the Special EU Representative, Miroslav Lajcak. The UK, like the US, fully supports that process. Our embassies, and I myself, are in constant contact with partners from Quint and with the leaders and Serbia and Kosovo, regarding numerous issues, including the dialogue and relations between Serbia and Kosovo. We provide practical support in various areas, such as the reconciliation process, or solving the issue of missing persons," Docherty said.

Among other things, he pointed out that Great Britain appreciated that Serbia had supported Ukraine and condemned the war in the General Assembly of the United Nations, and in other international organizations.