Jeff Hovenir also assured political and civic leaders in Kosovo during an exchange of views on the formation of the Kosovo Serb community that Washington does not support any agreement that violates the Kosovo constitution.
At the same time, the ambassador called on Pristina to define its own vision for the Serbian entity, which ensures that Kosovo, as an independent, multi-ethnic and sovereign democratic state, will defend the rights of minorities in the future.
In recent weeks, delegates from the United States and the European Union visited Pristina and Belgrade to encourage the two countries to accept a new proposal aimed at normalizing relations and boosting offers to join the European Union. The details of the proposal have not yet been announced.
The creation of a Kosovo Serb community of municipalities was one of the first points that Belgrade and Pristina agreed upon when the dialogue aimed at normalizing relations began in 2013, mediated by Brussels. Settling the relationship is the key to European integration for both countries.
Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in 2008, but Belgrade has refused to recognize it since then, and still regards the predominantly Albanian province as its own southern province.
About one hundred thousand Serbs live in Kosovo, and in the northern part of the country they make up a bloc of about fifty thousand people. The community that will provide autonomy for the Serb minority in Kosovo will be formed from these municipalities. The Kosovo Albanians reject this because they see aspirations for autonomy that would already prepare for joining Serbia.
Cover photo credit: Erkin Keci/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
