Hodzaj: Belgrade, Pristina should sign peace agreement

BELGRADE - Belgrade and Pristina should sign a peace agreement before Serbia joins the European Union, Kosovo Foreign Minister Enver Hodzaj said on Thursday.

The legally binding agreement that is being referred to in the EU is nothing else but a peace agreement to us, Hodzaj told reporters ahead of a regional conference on economic management, held in Belgrade.

The process of normalising the Belgrade-Pristina ties should end with Kosovo's admission to the United Nations, which Belgrade should not be blocking, Hodzaj added.

The two sides should establish diplomatic relations, he said.

Pristina is ready to solve all open issues with Belgrade within three to five years, Hodzaj said.

The dialogue with Belgrade must not be an infinite process, but one that has a clear objective - a full normalisation of relations, he added.

Commenting on the incidents at the Serbia vs Albania soccer match in Belgrade, sparked by a political provocation as a drone carrying a banner with the map of Greater Albania was flown into the stadium, Hodzaj said that they just demonstrated how fragile the situation in the region is.

International troops were deployed and a UN interim administration mission was set up in Kosovo following the 1999 NATO aggression against Serbia.

About 250,000 Serbs and 30,000 Roma were forced to leave their homes in Kosovo to survive attacks by Albanian nationalists.

Supported by most Western countries, primarily the United States, ethnic Albanians in the southern Serbian province unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in February 2008. Serbia does not recognize Kosovo as an independent state.

Photo Tanjug Video