Latinovic: Status upgrade in NATO PA compensation for Kosovo for the Council of Europe

Former Serbian ambassador to the OSCE Branka Latinovic believes that Kosovo's upgrade in the NATO Parliamentary Assembly is compensation for the non-consideration of their membership in the Council of Europe, but also a sort of message to Serbia after the adoption of the Srebrenica Resolution at the UN General Assembly.

Latinovic tells Kosovo Online that the timing of the decision to grant Kosovo the status of an associate member is questioned, adding that several factors influenced this decision to be made at this session. One of them is for Kosovo's status to be along with Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"Bosnia and Herzegovina's candidate status has been confirmed, and it was decided to upgrade the status for both assemblies, meaning the confirmation of what Bosnia and Herzegovina had previously, because it was assessed as a country, or in the case of Kosovo, an area where we talk about regions at risk with security concerns," Latinovic notes.

She also believes that this is a form of compensation for the authorities in Pristina for what did not happen in Strasbourg, meaning the consideration of Kosovo's accession to the Council of Europe has been postponed. She points out that the final decision on membership is made by the Committee of Ministers, and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe only provides a recommendation.

"This was intended to mitigate the consequences of the decision to postpone until further notice because we don't know when it will be on the agenda again," she adds.

Latinovic says that granting associate membership status to Kosovo is also a message to Serbia due to the adoption of the Srebrenica Resolution at the UN General Assembly.

"I think this is also a message to Serbia regarding the triumphalism expressed in New York regarding the adoption of the Srebrenica Resolution and the way we interpreted it," she said.

Latinovic emphasizes that the Alliance has long-term plans regarding its engagement in Kosovo's territory.