Prime Minister Edi Rama at press conference on situation in northern Kosovo

Prime Minister Edi Rama: Good afternoon! I stand in front of you again after another wasted day without dialogue between the leaders of Kosovo and Serbia in Brussels, while the situation between the two states is steadily deteriorating into an extremely dangerous spiral of absurdity.

And it couldn’t actually be otherwise yesterday as long as the three Kosovo police officers are still being held in detention in Serbia, no progress can be made in dialogue or concrete de-escalation without them returned home, and there can’t even be normality in the relations between Albania and Serbia as long as Serbia doesn’t end detention of the three policemen who haven’t committed any crime. Even though they have crossed the border, if we were take such a claim for granted, it is universally known that based on the legislation of any democratic country anywhere around the world, people who are detained on illegal border crossing charges are questioned and repatriated and they are barred from entering that country for a certain period of time.

Detaining them in prison for many days now is unjustifiable and it is unacceptable, while the attempt to cover up this state blunder by unjustly jailing three foreign policemen in the prison of another state, while issuing an outcry over the arrest by Kosovo police of certain individuals from the Serb minority – it is extremely worrisome because democratic states never react symmetrically to alleged violations of the rights of fellow citizens in another state.

If Serbia pretends that Kosovo citizens of Serb nationality are arbitrarily arrested in the country’s north, such claims can’t be argued by keeping three Albanian policemen hostage in Serbia, but by cooperating with the international factor, KFOR and EULEX and, most importantly, by concretely acting precisely at the origin of this problem, namely the relation that should be normalized and the relation that should be finalized.

Today I reiterate the appeal for the immediate and unconditional release, without “if”, the three Kosovo police officers, not only because this is a violation of human rights that cannot be minimized in any way, because without the three men returning home, there could be no room to move forward with the de-escalation plan.

On the other hand, I would like to inform you that two days ago, after the draft-status on the Association of Serb Municipalities, I have sent a second letter to President Macron and Chancellor Scholz, also to the knowledge of the European Council President Charles Michel, regarding the indispensability of a fresh and concrete push by France and Germany as the sponsors of the Franco-German plan, certainly through the support of the United States of America, so that the Franco-German plan is implemented, taking notice of the fact that the situation in north of Kosovo is deteriorating as a result of the political infighting between the two leaders of Kosovo and Serbia and is increasingly mounting tension, seriously risking to trigger a fatal armed clash between groups operating in Kosovo North  and the security forces, which could result in a catastrophe that would inevitably involve KFOR too, a clash that if it were to last even three hours only, let alone three days or three weeks, would turn out to be fatal to whatever has been done over all these years, efforts, initiatives, interactions within the Western Balkans under the umbrella of the historic Berlin Process, a dramatic reversal for the entire region and its future, which cannot become hostage to political fatigue for the electorates, neither in Kosovo nor in Serbia.

Our countries, our nations – I mean whole Balkan region – our states in this “neighborhood” of Europe have embarked and are pursuing a completely different path from that of the impasse in north and we can’t afford keeping waiting over years for this dialogue process to conclude, so that Kosovo-Serbia ties can normalize, the de facto mutual recognition happens, while conflicts flare again purely for political interests in both countries, including conflicts over car plates, elections without voters, constantly reminding others that this region is the one that is struggling to remove the terrible stain and hallmark of history each year, but which, all of a sudden, reawakens on the wrong side again.

Therefore it is extremely important for everyone to realize, including those talking about big and small brothers, all those looking for reasons of the unreason to constantly postpone and drag this process, because our national interest, the interest of the Albanian state is threatened by this situation and this region belongs neither to Albin, nor to Aleksandar.

This region belongs to the peoples, to the states that populate and administer it and this region has suffered a lot from the nationalists, the national-folklorists and steady clashes that could have been justifiable at past times, but there is no reason for them today, when we live right at the heart of Europe that is calling for peace at any cost and, to say the least, such a situation appertains to one superpower only; namely Russia. It befits no one else. It is not Europe to benefit from these clashes and this inability to sit patiently and carry forward this rather difficult process, but which is the only possible way out. It is only Russia the one to benefit from all this.

A framework deal is in place, which the two sides agreed upon, although the two countries are pretending as if such an agreement has never happened. This is the truth and this is the fact and this status quo can no longer go on and we should get out of this Tom and Jerry-pile political game.

We must also avoid the scenario of the deterioration of Kosovo’s position, but also the scenario of Serbia’s isolation, because they are not good scenarios for us at all. They are not good scenarios for our national interest, the interest of Albania as a country that is seeking to progress economically at any cost and everything happening around us poses a threat as we move forward on the path to become the ones we wish to become as a state in the eyes of everyone and a gateway for everyone.

How are we supposed to turn Albania into a top tourist destination if the Balkans plunges into conflict, even a conflict that would last three hours only? What the future can hold in store all the more so now that an initial wave of sanctions are in place? Therefore, total support is needed for all the efforts already made, the extraordinary work being done by the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, the EU Special Envoy Lajcak, and the U.S. Department of State Envoy, Mr. Escobar, and others. It is imperative that both the President of France and the Chancellor of Germany intervene and decisively push for full implementation of that framework agreement, which was not even signed, but which the parties say they have agreed upon and this is what the EU also says.

So, the trips to Brussels, with the parties at some point even appearing at press conferences, issuing statements whether they would and attend or not Brussels meetings are all wasted time, whereas the situation on the ground is increasingly deteriorating and explosion of that situation in the form of a conflict would trigger incredible consequences for everyone and this is the reason why I think it is extremely important and imperative that the two leaders, together with anyone else, are taken and locked in a conference under the auspices and the pressure from the plan’s sponsors, in a conference of normalization with none of them allowed to walk out until talks complete and all the points, which no one rejects, but for which both sides blame each other for failure to implement, are fully addressed.

I am not going to comment on the economy of Kosovo, let alone the economy of Serbia, as I am not entitled to do so. So I think the only one to benefit from this situation is the gentleman sitting there inside his bunker in the Kremlin and, I have told you earlier, that if an image was to be created, Russia would be definitely shown with a grimacing face. We shouldn’t also neglect the attempts to take advantage of this situation concretely on the ground, even through those armed groups, and all sorts of other stories which are absolutely catastrophic and must be stopped at all costs. Playing war games on Facebook is something completely different from armed conflicts.