Vujinovic: The decision on lifting the sanctions will show whether the EU supports Kurti’s policy

Security studies researcher Nikola Vujinovic believes that deescalation of the situation in northern Kosovo does not mean only taking over the position of mayor, but that the problem is much deeper, and that this cannot be the only condition for lifting the sanctions that the European Union imposed on Kosovo.

According to Vujinovic, the decisions made in the northern municipalities over the past three years cannot be changed by the new local authorities alone, but they will need support from the central level, which, in his words, is unlikely.

"The problem is much deeper and will prove to be much bigger than a simple handover of the mayor’s office. A large number of decisions made by illegitimate mayors over the past three years are things that local self-government cannot change on its own. It must have the support of the central government in Pristina, and considering Kurti’s attitude toward the Serb community, it is unlikely that they will suddenly change their entirely negative stance toward the ability of the Serb community to take political care of itself," Vujinovic told Kosovo Online.

He notes that deescalation requires Serbs to return to Kosovo’s institutions, which the EU also stated, and because of this he thinks that the EU Council will not lift the sanctions on Kosovo.

"In my opinion, we can speak of deescalation only when Serb mayors and Serb-majority municipalities operationally begin to change certain things. Whether that means street names, whether it means blocking certain expropriations carried out by the central government for police bases, and so on... Likewise, when Serb personnel return to the prosecutor’s offices and the police. This is something the European Union has pointed out, which gives me some hope that the Council will not lift the measures, because the situation needs to be viewed more deeply," our interlocutor added.

Vujinovic stresses that the EU’s decision on lifting sanctions on Kosovo will show whether the EU supports the policy of Kosovo’s prime minister in a technical mandate, Albin Kurti, or whether it will support the opposition parties on their path to forming an opposition government.

"What worries me further is the fact that this decision will come on the eve of new parliamentary elections in Kosovo, where we will clearly see from the decision whom the European Union supports. If the European Union lifts the measures or makes a decision to remove them gradually over the next three months, it is supporting Albin Kurti and thereby supporting his policy toward the Serb community. If, however, it says no, deescalation is not enough, the Community of Serb Municipalities is needed, at least for talks about it to begin, then it will be clear that they are giving support to the opposition parties, which are increasingly considering forming a large post-election coalition in order to form the government themselves," Vujinovic concluded.