Wess Mitchell, the US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, said in Pristina today that he had come to Kosovo to boost the talks between Kosovo and Serbia and refuted allegations that he had come with a proposal to resolve the problems between the two countries.
“Yes, I read about those speculations, but I came here to give an impetus to the dialogue between Pristina and Belgrade,” Mitchell said at a joint press conference with Kosovo President, Hashim Thaci.
“Kosovo has good relations with the United States and they will continue to deepen.” The United States supports a democratic Kosovo, and I want to tell you that next year we will play an even more active role,” Mitchell said.
Apart from Kosovo officials, Mitchell is also due to meet with the Macedonian, Serbian, Greek, and Cypriot officials until 17th March. In Serbia, he is scheduled to meet with President Aleksandar Vucic, Prime Minister, Ana Brnabic, Foreign Minister, Ivica Dacic and several opposition leaders.
Dacic told the Vecernje Novosti daily that Mitchell coming to Belgrade was very important, adding that that was the first visit of such a high-ranking official from the new Washington administration.
In September last year, he replaced Victoria Nuland in this position. During the presidential campaign in 2012, Mitchell was a member of the national security team of a Republican candidate, Mitt Romney.
He has been a NATO expert for transatlantic relationship, and has worked at the Center for European Policy Analysis for 12 years, which he also co-founded. Mitchell has also been a committee member in several American and European institutes, such as the Brzezinski Institute on Geostrategy, the Slovak Atlantic Commission, and the Prague Center for Transatlantic Relations.
He co-authored two books on geopolitics, including the controversial book called “The Unquiet Frontier: Rising Rivals, Vulnerable Allies, and the Crisis of American Power”. His third book will be released this year.
Mitchell received his B.A. in history and political science from Texas Tech University. He received his M.A. in German and European studies from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. He lives in Virginia with his wife and two children. He speaks German.
(Nedeljnik, Novi Magazin, 12.03.2018)
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