The European Commission has reprimanded Kosovo and Serbia for not implementing the agreements reached in the dialogue mediated by the European Union in its progress reports for both countries, which are expected to be published on Wednesday.
Radio Free Europe has seen a draft of the 150-page report, which assesses whether or not Kosovo has met the criteria and the recommendations provided by the European Commission in its previous reports.
Kosovo has made “limited progress” in fulfilling the necessary standards to join the EU. This is the most frequent assessment in the report, which the Commission is expected to approve tomorrow after the College of Commissioners’ meeting.
However, in this year’s reports, as in the one for Kosovo, and also for Serbia, extra attention has been given to the fulfillment of obligations arising from the Brussels dialogue, and in this regard, both countries are criticized for not implementing them.
The normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia is evaluated with the same text in both individual progress reports for each respective country, as these obligations are part of the criteria for advancement in the European integration process.
Recalling the agreement reached in Brussels in February and its implementation annexe a month later in Ohrid, the report expresses regret that the parties have not yet started to fulfil their obligations.
The Basic Agreement and its annexe require the parties to develop normal neighbourly relations and recognize each other’s relevant documents and national symbols. For Kosovo, the agreement implies de facto recognition by Serbia, while for the latter, its annexe implies Kosovo’s formation of an Association of Serb-majority municipalities.
“Both Kosovo and Serbia have not yet begun to fulfil their respective obligations arising from the Agreement, which are valid and binding for the parties and part of their European path. The parties must urgently engage more constructively and start implementing new, or precondition-free, commitments,” the Progress Report states.
The report highlights Kosovo’s obligation to establish the Association of Serb-majority municipalities. In this regard, the document emphasizes that the initial draft of the Association’s statute, presented at the high-level dialogue meeting in May and was practically Serbia’s draft, “was not in line with the relevant agreements from the dialogue”.
The report now calls for the Association to be established based on the latest proposal given to the parties on October 21.
“Kosovo is expected to initiate the process leading to the establishment of the Association of Serb-majority municipalities based on the European proposal, which was presented to the parties on October 21, 2023, and Serbia is required to support this process and simultaneously start fulfilling its key obligations from the Agreement,” warns the report, which calls for “formalities, including approval-related ones, not to be obstacles on the path of progress in implementation”.
(Radio Free Europe, 07.11.2023)
https://www.slobodnaevropa.org/a/evropska-komisija-srbija-izvestaj/32673608.html