Global Rivalry in Balkans Could Pull Region Apart

Germany and France may use it to initiate a new round of talks between Serbia and Kosovo, aiming to resolve their tense relations through a "new deal" that could include "dual sovereignty" and/or "greater autonomy" over some disputed territories, EU officials have said.

Yet the previous EU-led dialogue on Kosovo has failed miserably, while both the Serbian and Kosovo publics have already rejected this latest idea before the meeting even started - which may deter the summit organizers from pushing on with it, sources have said.

"Double sovereignty is mission impossible," read the title of a news article published by the Serbian daily Danas on April 18, citing Serbian and Kosovo sources.

In this context, the new Berlin summit, offering little chance for a breakthrough, is likely to further erode the already dented image of the EU in the Balkans.

Fed up with fruitless high-level meetings, in the absence of a more concrete EU and US political and financial involvement, some Balkan leaders seem increasingly attracted to Russian, Chinese, Turkish and other foreign actors in the Balkans, experts warn.

Just before Berlin, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic led a numerous state delegation to Bejing to participate in the Belt and Road Initiative Forum, where on Thursday and Friday he was meeting the Chinese and Russian presidents, Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin.

Even before the meeting in Berlin, relations between Balkan countries and the EU have entered a phase where the two sides almost seem to be talking in different languages, and making little effort to understand each other.

EU-Balkan relation - lost in translation:

Croatian President Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic is welcomed by EU Commission...