Surlic: Mutual recognition agreement is a redundant topic and a platitude

Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade, Stefan Surlic, believes that the position of Richard Grenell, US President Donald Trump’s special envoy for special missions, that the idea of mutual recognition between Kosovo and Serbia is ridiculous, cannot be equated with official US foreign policy.

“I would say this is his personal view, but certainly a rational approach is very important, and those who will actually be engaged in the Belgrade–Pristina dialogue will consult him. Since he has extensive diplomatic experience in talks with both Belgrade and Pristina, he is aware of the fact that there is no political option in Belgrade that would officially support the idea of recognizing Kosovo, and, on the other hand, he knows that recognition of Serbia as an independent state is not even on the table in Pristina. Therefore, a recognition agreement is a completely irrelevant topic and a platitude with no real meaning,” Surlic told Kosovo Online.

As a reminder, Grenell said that the idea of mutual recognition between Kosovo and Serbia is ridiculous, noting that this was his personal opinion, and that the focus should be on economic development.

Commenting on that statement, Surlic said that Grenell’s thesis continues the policy pursued by Donald Trump – “let’s cooperate economically, and in years, perhaps decades, some normalization of relations may come about, and the status issues between Serbs and Albanians will become irrelevant.”

“I assume this strategy will also be present in Donald Trump’s administration, but again, all the messages we have heard so far have not suggested any radical shift or change in US foreign policy. They are very much interested in ensuring that Kosovo’s independence remains firmly supported internationally and that there are no discordant notes in the sense of offering more support to the Serbian side, i.e., Belgrade’s position, or, ultimately, changing the current policy of active lobbying for Kosovo’s independence,” Surlic concluded.