Berlin Summit Must ‘Jumpstart’ Failing Serbia-Kosovo Talks

The EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn told the German news agency DPA on Friday that the goal of the meeting should be ending the blockade of the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue.

Germany ambassador to Serbia Thomas Schieb hinted to regional TV television N1 on April 11 that Germany might insist on Kosovo removing the high tariffs it has imposed on Serbian imports, which prompted Serbia to freeze the dialogue.

"We know the tariffs imposed by Pristina are an obstacle and we believe they should be revoked to ensure continuation of the dialogue," Schieb said.

Nic, from DGAP, said minimum outcome of the Berlin meeting should be the resumption of the stalled talks with the presence and support of high-level leaders from the region and the EU.

"The minimum goal is to pick up the pieces of that discussion and return the Serbia-Kosovo discussion back into the process. The second goal is actually to jumpstart the dialogue, which has reached a dead end under [EU foreign policy chief Federica] Mogherini," Nic told BIRN.

The German Council on Foreign Relations gathers more than 30 foreign policy experts and has almost 60 years of experience in promoting public debate on German foreign policy.

Nic said Germany was deeply critical of Mogherini's apparent support for the idea of a land swap between Serbia and Kosovo to promote a lasting solution.

Milan Nic. Photo: DGAP/Dirk Enters

This would involve Kosovo ceding Serb-majority districts in the far north to Serbia, and Serbia ceding some mainly Albanian areas in the south, in the so-called Presevo valley.

The presidents of Serbia and Kosovo have both mooted the possibility of redrawing borders as a route to a settlement that Kosovo hopes would see it join the United...