Petkovic: Concerned about the position and future of the Serbs, Pristina is not ready for a solution

Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, Petar Petkovic, after today's talks in Brussels, said he was concerned about the position and future of the Serbs in Kosovo because it was evident that there was no political will on the other side to reach a solution.

Petkovic, after the talks at the headquarters of the EU External Action Service, which initially took place in a trilateral format and then bilaterally with the EU envoy Miroslav Lajcak, told reporters that he didn't have much to say to them.Top of Form

"After six hours spent at the European Union External Action Service in Brussels, I don't have much to tell you, which, it seems to me, speaks volumes in itself about the direction of the dialogue, and it's not due to Belgrade's fault. We had direct talks with the Pristina side as well; we presented our proposal, and Pristina presented theirs. Our proposal is balanced, taking into account the interests of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija. It was done in consultation with our experts. Every word has been scrutinized five times," he said.

Petkovic pointed out that, on the other hand, Pristina had not made any effort to make that document a proposal heading towards a compromise solution.

"That's what extremely concerns me. I don't know which direction the dialogue will take. I am worried about the position and future of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija when you see that there is no political will on the other side to reach a solution," he emphasized.

Petkovic highlighted that Serbia would continue to negotiate with all its might and would invest all its energy, coming as many times as necessary, just to reach a solution.

"We will do everything in our power to preserve peace and our people in Kosovo and Metohija, where human rights are violated, and where they are prevented by Pristina and Kurti from receiving their salaries, pensions, and social benefits. We discussed these proposals for more than three and a half hours in direct talks with Pristina. Then followed discussions at the level of bilateral meetings with the EU, and the agreement is to continue talks on April 4th in Brussels," he conveyed.

He said that everything seemed to him that the other side did not want a compromise and that Albin Kurti would continue to persecute the Serbs.

He said that as far as the EU was concerned, that was a different story, that the EU either didn't have or didn't want a solution, and there was no third option.

"In any case, we are committed to dialogue and will do everything to reach a solution, with our experts trying to enable the continued operation of the Postal Savings Bank in Kosovo and Metohija, and for our people to freely receive their salaries, pensions, and social benefits, all the competencies they receive from Serbia. That is the essence of our proposal," Petkovic emphasized.

He expressed confidence that the Serbian delegation acted responsibly, and very correctly, seeking a solution, seeking a compromise, because compromise was not a bad or ugly word for Serbia.

"But on the other hand, you have an interlocutor who obviously wants, together with his mentors, to impose solutions. We'll see if they will be able to do that. In any case, another round of talks is ahead of us. We will see if it will be the last when it comes to the dinar and Kurti's unilateral decision to ban Serbia's payment transactions in Kosovo and Metohija," Petkovic concluded.