Pavkovic: It is possible that Pristina’s chief negotiator will not be a Government member, that would signal that dialogue is still not a priority

Milos Pavkovic, Director of Strategy at the Center for European Policies in Belgrade, believes that it is not out of the question that Pristina’s new chief negotiator in the dialogue with Belgrade will not be a member of the Government, as was the case in the previous mandate, but that the position could be lowered to a technical level. In that case, he considers, it could be interpreted as a message that dialogue is still not a priority for the Government of Kosovo.

“Even when Deputy Prime Minister Besnik Bislimi was the chief negotiator, the dialogue was not a priority, and in this way the importance of dialogue with Belgrade for the Government of Kosovo would be further lowered on the scale. However, it could also be an opportunity for a fresh face and a new approach. Much will depend on the kind of pressure that comes from the EU, that is from the Quint countries, for Pristina to truly commit to dialogue,” Pavkovic told Kosovo Online.

Speaking about Besnik Bislimi’s performance in the dialogue process, he says there has been very little progress in the normalization process.

“We are actually talking about a hardline stance in the dialogue, very problematic relations over the previous three to four years, with unilateral moves by Pristina and the setting of unrealistic conditions on Pristina’s side that were very unconstructive. When we talk about Bislimi’s legacy, we are not talking about changes on the ground or progress in normalization, but about the status quo, about failed rounds of negotiations and about unilateral conditions and actions that Pristina undertook over the previous year,” Pavkovic states.