March 28. 2024. 1:32

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Lajcak: We are looking for a win-win situation for Belgrade, Pristina


The high-level meeting in Ohrid between Belgrade and Pristina aims to find a “win-win situation and open the European door”, the EU’s Represenative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue Miroslav Lajčak during his visit to Belgrade.

Lajčak repeated on several occasions that the Serbian Municipalities Association must be formed and underlined that “if there is no SMA, there is no agreement”.

The goal is not for someone to win or lose, he said, noting that “the goal is to look for a win-win situation and to open the European door.”

The meeting in Ohrid, to be held on 18 March, aims to agree on the fulfilment of the agreement, which has unprecedented support from the EU.

Lajčak is on a two-day visit to Belgrade since Monday.

Besides holding talks with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, Lajčak also held a meeting with part of the opposition. Last week, Lajčak spoke to Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti and said that the conversation “fulfilled his expectations”.

Kurti stated during the weekend that he does not believe Vučić’s will to sign the agreement, but that he still has hope for the negotiations.

“We believe that the basic agreement between Kosovo and Serbia is a step towards mutual recognition of the two states. We believe that the full normalisation of relations requires such recognition as the central point of the agreement”, Kurti said.

“The basic agreement, suggested by all 27 EU countries, is the foundation for us to move forward, and we hope to finally reach it on March 18th”, he added.