Another meeting between leaders from Serbia and Kosovo aiming to normalise ties, ended with just a verbal deal and no signatures. After 12 hours of discussion, Kosovo's Prime Minister Albin Kurti said he was ready to put his name on the Western-backed deal but Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic refused to do the same. Vucic says he will never sign any internationally binding agreement with Kosovo as he doesn't recognize it as a country but agreed to normalise relations with its former province.
The meeting in the North Macedonian city of Ohrid came three weeks after both leaders accepted the EU-backed deal in Brussels. The 11 point plan says the two countries should work on normalising relations and respecting each other's territorial integrity. It also says Belgrade should not object to Kosovo's membership in any international organisation and that Pristina should commit to give more autonomy to Kosovo's Serbs. However, in Ohrid, EU officials said the two sides couldn't find a mutually acceptable solution as ambitious as the EU proposal. They also stated that the EU will now forcefully demand both sides to fulfil what was verbally agreed if they want to join the bloc.
Across The Balkans, hosted by Nafisa Latic, is TRT World’s programme that focuses specifically on the issues and fault lines shaping Southeast Europe today.
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