Petkovic: Kurti is the sole culprit for the failure of negotiations, this was unequivocally confirmed by Borrell

The Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, Petar Petkovic, stated today at a press conference that the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, had told a series of falsehoods against Serbia.

According to Petkovic, Kurti is doing this to cover up that he is solely to blame for the failure of last week's round of negotiations in Brussels.

"This was unequivocally confirmed by EU High Representative Josep Borrell after the meeting," Petkovic added.

He emphasized that since the talks in Brussels ended on September 14, Kurti had been "floundering in his political mud and lies" and added that he had done the same today at the press conference where he had told "a series of lies" regarding Belgrade and the dialogue process.

"It does this to cover up the clear condemnation that came from the EU after the failed round of dialogue, where the head of European diplomacy Borrell said that the only culprits were Kurti and Pristina, who had refused to form the CSM for 10 years," Petkovic said at a press conference in Belgrade. 

According to Petkovic, when Kurti says that he will not even enter into discussions about the draft statute for the CSM, he shows everyone that he does not want any negotiations, dialogue, or compromise.

Stating that Kurti said regarding the CSM "that he cannot give coffee without a cup", Petkovic points out that no one even offered him coffee and points out that dialogue is not about drinking coffee.

"He made life so miserable for the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija that no one even wants to see him, let alone drink coffee with him, except for a few of them, like Nenad Rasic," Petkovic says.
He emphasizes that Kurti does not want the CSM and that he did not want to discuss de-escalation in the north either.

He adds that Belgrade, that is, the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucićc, has clearly shown that he is ready for compromise solutions, dialogue, and talks because, as he points out, this is the only way to protect the Serbs in Kosovo.

He recalled that on September 14, the delegation from Belgrade had submitted lists of all the sufferings of the Serbs since June 3, when the EU had issued a joint statement demanding immediate de-escalation, stating that since then 22 escalating moves by Pristina against the Serbs in northern Kosovo had taken place.

Regarding the fact that Kurti is talking about the administrative instruction for the removal of the mayors in the north as a step towards de-escalation and organizing elections, Petkovic says that he should follow the path that the EU is also asking him to take - the withdrawal of the police from the north, the urgent start of the procedure for holding new elections and to start forming the CSM.

"Kurti doesn't think of going in that direction, on the contrary, even on the day when we have negotiations, they send the police to Leposavic, and in Zubin Potok, the illegitimate Albanian mayor expresses the desire for this municipality to join the Association of Kosovo Municipalities and many other things that lead to additional escalation," he said.

Referring to the statements of the Prime Minister of Kosovo about the Serb List, Petkovic emphasizes that even today Kurti has stuck to the thesis that the Serbs and the Serb List will "suffer and pay".

"He said at today's conference that Kosovo will not suffer and pay because of some maliciousness of the Serb List, but confirms the thesis that the Serbs and the Serb List will suffer and pay," Petkovic said.
Petkovic states that Kurti also said that all the measures that Pristina adopted did not make sense and pointed out that with that the Kosovo Prime Minister said that he "continues to threaten the Serbs as he has done so far".

He also points out that no one from the international community reacted to the threats to the Serbs and the Serb List, as well as that the day after the talks, both the EU and the USA said that it was necessary to share the responsibility for the unsuccessful round of dialogue.

"We in Brussels negotiate with Kurti the least and face many problems on the ground. For us, compromise is not an ugly word, for us, compromise is a way to save the lives of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, to move towards de-escalation, and to preserve peace not only in Kosovo and Metohija, not only in the north of Kosovo and Metohija but in the area of the entire Western Balkans," Petkovic emphasized.

Petkovic states that Kurti "will continue to fake dialogue, to lie".

Stating that Kurti said today that the dialogue had failed because Belgrade insisted on the CSM, Petkovic thanked him, adding that in this way he had confirmed that President Vucic was fighting for the interests of his people and that Kurti did not want to talk.

"We don't need the CSM as a shell, but with the essential powers agreed upon by the agreements. We are going to Brussels to negotiate because there we are looking for political solutions and we do not recognize Kosovo," Petkovic pointed out.

He emphasizes that he is worried about the situation on the ground because, as he says, such brutal threats by Kurti indicate that he will not stop with attacks on the Serbs.

Petkovic pointed out that the President of Serbia would fight in New York as well as in Brussels for the interests of the Serbs and stated that Vucic would talk to all representatives of the international community to de-escalate and that someone stop Kurti in his efforts to expel the Serbs, which he underlined, is apparently his only goal.

"Both today and in Brussels, Kurti was nervous because he is not getting what he wanted because Vucic and Belgrade are not giving up on their people and what was agreed," Petkovic said and added that there would be more "similar fabrications" from Pristina.

"I am worried about the Serbs in Kosovo, because usually when Pristina finds itself in such situations, it resorts to violent pressure on the Serbs," Petkovic said.

However, Petkovic points out that there is no other solution than a political one in Brussels and states that Serbia and President Vucic will continue to fight for the Serbs.