Surlic: It is not in Pristina’s interest to make any concessions in the dialogue due to elections

Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade, Stefan Surlic, tells Kosovo Online that there is no room for agreement on any issue in the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina until the end of the year, because of the upcoming elections in Kosovo in February, which makes it politically disadvantageous for Pristina to show any concessions toward Belgrade.

He adds that at this moment, a new agenda from the European Commission is expected, along with clarity on whether Miroslav Lajcak will be replaced as mediator or if Kaja Kallas, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, will assume the role as the dominant figure and negotiator in the Belgrade-Pristina relations.

According to Surlic, even agreements already reached in the dialogue are unlikely to be implemented in the near future.

“Perhaps issues such as freedom of trade, opening new crossings, and faster movement of goods at Medare will be left to technical solutions. However, even in that area, the end of the year is too short, despite the general consensus among international actors, Belgrade, and Pristina that free trade must finally be enabled,” he noted.

When asked whether the attack on the Ibar-Lepenac canal might be discussed in tomorrow’s round of dialogue, Surlic said it is possible there will be an exchange of political accusations on the matter, but no substantial progress.

“In the end, it will boil down to the conclusion that the incident must be investigated and that the competent authorities must issue their findings. Belgrade has very openly offered an international investigation, but this will not be a subject of the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, just as the Banjska case wasn’t. All incidents on the ground must first and foremost receive a final judgment from the competent authorities, after which we can determine who is behind them and who is undermining peace between Serbs and Albanians,” Surlic emphasized.