Latinovic: Five months without a US ambassador is a message Pristina needs to analyze

A specific message is being sent to Pristina by the fact that a new US ambassador has not yet been appointed, and Pristina should analyze this message from the perspective of the relationship it had with the previous ambassador and, more broadly, with the United States as a whole, Branka Latinovic, former ambassador and member of the Forum for International Relations, tells Kosovo Online.

Latinovic says that it is not a common situation for five full months to pass without a new ambassador being appointed after the end of a predecessor's mandate, as is currently the case in Pristina. After an ambassador's mandate ends, or their term concludes for other reasons, procedures are typically carried out within two to three months so that a new ambassador arrives and takes over the post. However, there are certain situations when an ambassador is not appointed for a longer period.

“The reasons could be signals. For example, if there are tensions in bilateral relations, then the lack of an appointment is a signal that relations will not return to the previous level until open, problematic issues are resolved. In this case, it is possible that this is one such factor, considering that the previous, Biden-led administration was certainly not satisfied with Pristina’s attitude toward the American side and toward Jeffrey Hovenier personally. Hovenier is known in diplomatic circles as a dynamic and energetic person in pursuing his ambitions, but we did not see that he had any particular success in Pristina, despite his engagement on certain matters. As far as I know, he resigned before Trump took office,” Latinovic says.

As a second possibility, our interviewee points out that appointing an ambassador in a large diplomatic network like that of the United States is not a simple task and that they may simply be looking for a suitable candidate.

“Also, this issue is certainly not a priority. In addition, there is a political vacuum in Pristina since there is no government. There is a president to whom credentials are presented, but an ambassador needs to work with institutions, not just the president. So, this is definitely a message that Pristina should analyze in the context of its past relationship with the previous ambassador and, more broadly, with the United States,” Latinovic concludes.