Lajcak: We expect new local elections in northern Kosovo to be announced without further delay

"We expect new local elections in northern Kosovo to be announced without further delay. It is important that the process towards holding new elections for mayors in the four municipalities has finally begun with the establishment of initiative groups by Serbs from Kosovo earlier in December," stated Miroslav Lajcak, the EU Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, in an interview with Politika.

Lajcak believes that the re-establishment of fully representative local self-governments in northern Kosovo is necessary for de-escalating the situation on the ground and for the broader normalization process.

He emphasized its importance for the continuation of establishing the Community of Serb Municipalities with a Serbian majority.

"I regret that the registration of initiative groups initially faced unexpected administrative obstacles, but since then, I have received assurances from Kosovo that these issues will be resolved soon so that the collection of signatures for the removal of mayors can begin immediately," Lajcak highlighted, as reported by RTS.

He pointed out that the situation in Kosovo is fragile, and simultaneous escalation or tensions cannot coexist with progress in the normalization of relations.

Lajcak underscored that the dialogue is the only platform for resolving all open issues and potential sources of conflict.