Hovenier: We are worried because Pristina ignores our demands

United States Ambassador to Kosovo Jeffrey Hovenier told Klan Kosova that the US was concerned that the authorities in Kosovo had not responded positively to the demands of Washington and other partners for de-escalation in the north, stressing that if they continued on that path, there would be consequences. He also said that both sides should start implementing the agreement on the normalization of relations.

Hovenier stated that the authorities in Pristina had been invited to the celebration on the occasion of the 4th of July, the Independence Day of the US, even though the US government and the government of Kosovo currently had differences of opinion.

"We invited the usual guests. But, I must say and it is important to point out that we will celebrate together. The US government and the current government of Kosovo have some differences and I should not minimize or ignore them, but that does not mean that we do not have the same strategic goals and we can come together to celebrate the 247th anniversary of the signing of the US Declaration of Independence, which we will be happy to do," Hovenier said.

He pointed out that the United States of America, as the closest partner, was dedicated to the people of Kosovo.

He reminds that the US asked the Kosovo government to take some concrete actions to ease the situation in the north, to ensure the further progress of Kosovo, and ensure regional stability.

But, according to Hovenier, the US is worried because the Government of Kosovo has not responded positively to these demands.

Without going into details, Hovenier said that it was clear that there would be other consequences if this path continued and the Kosovo government did not respond to the demands of its friends from all countries that had been committed for more than two decades to Kosovo finding its place in Europe and the Euro-Atlantic structures.

Hovenier warned that the letter of eight US senators addressed to US President Joe Biden, in which they had expressed concern about the tense situation in the north of Kosovo, should worry everyone.

"The letter should be a cause for concern for all of us, and I think it reflects the views of not only the senator but also numerous American officials, including the Biden administration. We are concerned. We are Kosovo's closest partner and the commitment of the American people to Kosovo itself and the people of Kosovo remains stable as always. But we - and not only the US - but we have asked the government of Kosovo to take some concrete actions to help alleviate the situation in the north and to help us move forward for the sake of Kosovo and regional stability. And we are concerned that the Government of Kosovo did not respond positively to these requests," Hovenier said.

He said that other friendly countries of Kosovo had these demands and that he was surprised that Kosovo still did not have a positive response to the demands of its allies.

The American ambassador emphasized that he had also discussed with the Serbs from Kosovo about their participation in the potential elections in the northern municipalities.

"It is a difficult question. All I can tell you is that we see it as a way to move forward and as we talk here about the things that Kosovo should do, we talk with the Serbs in Kosovo and with Belgrade about what should happen on that side. Even those conversations are pretty straightforward and pretty good," Hovenier said.

He also referred to the issue of the arrest of three Kosovo policemen and their release from custody in Serbia.

"I think the United States was the first country to come out with a public statement about this situation and we made it clear that we believed that the arrest and the charges against them exacerbated an already tense situation and that the three should be released immediately and unconditionally," Hovenier recalled.

He expressed his satisfaction that the policemen had been released and that they are now home with their families, and that both sides should start the path of normalizing relations.

"I will say that we have to start looking ahead. We have to start looking at how to get out of this one-on-one situation or this escalation of tensions in the North and get to a point where our focus is on fully implementing the normalization agreement from both sides," he said.

Regarding Edi Rama's proposal on the Draft Statute of the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities, Hovenier said that it was serious and thoughtful, adding that the USA was not asking Kosovo to form a CSM that contradicted its Constitution.

"To repeat what I have said many times, the USA is not asking Kosovo to create a Community of Serb-majority of Municipalities that violates its Constitution, that is not in accordance with the decision of the Constitutional Court, or that goes beyond what has been announced by Gabriel Escobar and Derek Chollet, who have made it very clear that there will be no executive power, no third level of government, no model like Republika Srpska. We will not support it. There are ways to do that that will address the community's concerns, so we welcome ideas on how to do that," Hovenier said.

He said that the Government of Kosovo had to present new ideas and that it had to work with Miroslav Lajcak and the international community in order to progress toward the implementation of the Ohrid Agreement, adding that Serbia also had obligations it had to fulfill in order to implement that document.

"We will not give an opinion on the best steps, whether it is to lock people in a room until they reach an agreement... This is a process that is mediated by the EU and the Union has appointed someone we trust, Miroslav Lajcak, as the Special Representative, and the High Representative Josep Borrell, who currently plays an important role in all of this. They will determine what the next steps will be, and we will support them," the Ambassador said.

Hovenier also said that the US wanted to see the progress of Kosovo on the European and Euro-Atlantic path.

"We want to see that Kosovo takes its place in the European family. The way to do this is through EU-mediated dialogue. We want to overcome hotspots. We will continue with the hard work of implementing the agreement reached and concluded in February, with the annex adopted in Ohrid. We expect both sides to fully implement it. We want to work together on this because it is a difficult job - for Kosovo, it means work on the formation of the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities, and for Serbia to implement the provisions," he said.