Pristina is putting its relationship with its overseas partners on the line.
Such statement was made by the former speaker of “parliament” of quasi-state, the head of Democratic Party of Kosovo Kadri Vesely, commenting on a situation with duties on the Serbian goods and till now not fulfilled requirements of the USA to cancel them.
“I can’t believe that here, in parliament, we discuss whether the relations with the USA are really important for us,” the politician said. – He [Kosovo’s ‘government’ head Albin Curti] has sacrificed citizens, the state and questioned our relationship with the most important partner.
Kadri Vesely said “relations with America are sacred,” while Kurti called it a threat to the entire quasi-state.
The head of the self-proclaimed “Republic of Kosovo”, Hashim Thaci, also noted the statement. He called on the authorities to fulfill the will of Washington, reminding how much the Kosovo separatists owe the states.
“This policy is a threat to the future of our state. Each of us, heads of department, politicians and government, can be replaced. But only partnership with the US is vital for Kosovo. They cannot be replaced. Confrontation with the U.S. will be a devastating mistake”.
Albin Curti, for his part, remained adamant, thanking the U.S. for its “support” and saying that Pristina would not “serve” Washington in exchange for patronage.
As News Front reported, back in the autumn of 2018, Pristina introduced 100% duties on Serbian goods. That decision led to a freeze in the dialogue with Belgrade on the Kosovo settlement. Recently, the United States has insisted on resuming negotiations. As a consequence, Washington has repeatedly pointed out that the duties should be abolished, but Kosovo elites have ignored the demands of Western patrons.
Eventually, the United States delivered a strong ultimatum to the Kosovo separatists, according to which the U.S. armed contingent would leave the territory of the self-proclaimed “republic” unless it changed its mind. Even in the Senate, the day before, this had already been discussed.
In response to the U.S. demands, Kurti earlier announced a “gesture of good will”, which implied a phased abolition of duties. At the same time, he demanded countermeasures from Belgrade, and if they are not, the duties will be renewed. The U.S. administration was not indifferent to this approach, so Washington imposed sanctions on Pristina.