Serbia and Kosovo reached a historical agreement Friday that will permit them to normalise relations and set a path towards European Union membership.The agreement came after months of negotiations between the Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic and Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci in talks facilitated by EU High Representative, Catherine Ashton in Brussels.
The agreement must be considered tentative, as, according to Mr.Dacic, Serbia's top leadership would decide whether to accept or reject it «in the next few days."
While not much information is available on the terms agreed, it seems that it recognised the authority of the Kosovo government over the north part of Kosovo inhabited mostly by ethnic Serbs who do not recognize Kosovo's predominantly ethnic Albanian government, a major sticking point in the past. Mr. Dacic noted that the agreement reached Friday was "better than any other we were offered in the past." He also said that the association of Serb municipalities in Kosovo would retain "a high level of authority" in choosing a regional police commander.
The Kosovar Prime Minister, Mr Thaci, said reaching an agreement had been difficult, and there were people in both countries that wouldn't be happy with it. But, as he noted, "this agreement will help us heal the wounds of the past if we have the wisdom and the knowledge to implement it in practice."
He pointed out that the deal would pave the way for both Kosovo and Serbia to ultimately joint the European Union, and for Kosovo to pursuit its aspiration to join NATO.
Referring to that, Mr Dacic said Serbia would not block Kosovo's accession to the European Union, but had reserved the right to block its membership in other international organizations.
An indication that NATO may play in the settlement, the alliance's secretary-general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, issued a statement late Friday congratulating the parties for their constructive approach and expressing his happiness for "NATO to contribute to the conclusion of an historic agreement."
