15 important days for Serbia: Talks with Merkel, US meeting on Kosovo and Metohija, new government

The focus of all meetings is the Kosovo issue, and even if no final solution is reached, experts claim that more concrete things could certainly become known regarding that solution

That a difficult fall awaits us, when it comes to political circumstances, was announced in June by President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic, who said at the time that various form of pressure would be exerted on official Belgrade in connection with Kosovo and Metohija.

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From today's telephone conversation that President Vucic had with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, a face to face meeting with Miroslav Lajcak, then the upcoming visit to the US and meetings in Washington and Brussels, and the formation of a new Serbian government - all that fits into the next 15 days that cause special attention of domestic, but also foreign officials.

The focus of all meetings is the Kosovo issue, and even if no final solution is reached, experts claim that more concrete things could certainly become known regarding that solution and the untying of the "Kosovo knot."

Vucic at the Bled Strategic Forum

President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic is participating in the 15th Bled Strategic Forum, which traditionally represents the main foreign policy event in Slovenia, and where he is one of the main speakers at the leadership panel "Europe after Brexit and Covid-19."

His focus, as he announced, would be the issue of Kosovo and Metohija from the point of view of the fact that "a bill cannot be put together without the innkeeper" - that Serbia no longer agrees to play the role of a loser from the 1990s, and that he will not allow Serbia to be humiliated and feel defeated, because then, as he said, there will be no end to problems.

During his stay in Bled, he will also meet with the EU Special Representative for the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, Miroslav Lajcak.

Telephone conversation with the German chancellor

The president of Serbia had a telephone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and as he announced earlier, the main topic was Kosovo and Metohija, i.e., the upcoming meetings in Washington and Brussels.

"Kosovo will be the main topic, as well as the visit to Washington and Brussels. I also made a mini plan of what to present to the most powerful woman in the world, and to fight for all that," Vucic told reporters last night, while in a post on social networks today, he said that he had an excellent conversation with the German chancellor.

Vucic also said yesterday that he would discuss various issues with the most powerful woman, including coronavirus vaccines, bilateral cooperation between Serbia and Germany, and thank her for the recently signed act on additional cooperation between the Serbian Office and the German Ministry of Industry and Energy.

All eyes of domestic and foreign officials on Washington

US President Donald Trump's special envoy for the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, Richard Grenell, announced on August 14 that representatives of the two sides would meet at the White House on September 2.

"We are happy to announce that leaders of Kosovo and Serbia will meet at the White House for negotiations on September 2," Grenell wrote on Twitter at the time.

The conversation scheduled at the White House was originally supposed to take place on July 27, but after the Specialized Prosecutor's Office in The Hague submitted the indictment against Hashim Thaci and Kadri Veseli for war crimes to the Specialized Kosovo Chambers, the Pristina side canceled the meeting.

However, the date of the meeting was postponed again, by two day this time, and the reason is the possible presence at the meeting of US President Donald Trump, which has not been confirmed yet, but it is known that the conversation is organized by Trump's national security adviser, Robert O'Brien. The Serbia president said last night that preparations were underway for a meeting with Pristina representatives in Washington and that it was not known what the agenda would be. As he said, Belgrade will be ready for all options, but will make decisions in a wise way.

"We are working every day, we prepare all day," the president pointed out and added that it's not known what exactly the agenda would be, but that the talk should be about the economy.

However, as he said the possible presence of Donald Trump says that maybe some more ideas are possible.

"I can tell people in Serbia that I have no doubt thatfor  the delegation I will lead and for all of us this will be a sleepless time, not easy nights, but that we know our task and how great the shrine we are guarding is," he pointed out and added that Serbia is the most important regardless of all the challenges.

After the US, Vucic travels to Brussels

The Belgrade delegation continued negotiations with Pristina at the expert level in Brussels last week. This meeting, the second in a row, represented a continuation of the restarted dialogue, which had been stalled for 20 months, that resumed with a summit meeting on July 16, when President Aleksandar Vucic and Prime Minister of the Provisional Institutions in Pristina Avdullah Hoti met and spoke.

After a two-day visit to Washington, the president of Serbia will travel to Brussels on September 7. In earlier statements, he said that he would go to Brussels on September 7 and ask for the fulfillment of the agreement regarding the formation of the Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO) in Kosovo and Metohija.

"Germany and America will not withdraw their recognition of Kosovo. I am worried that we are not discussing real and essential problems, that is why the Serbian side will demand the fulfillment of the agreement from 2013, which was signed under the auspices of the European Union, to establish of the Community of Serb Municipalities," he said earlier.

New government after the White House meeting

Talks on the composition of a new government in Serbia began a month ago, and continued with consultations with parties individually. However, there is still no specific information on who will join the new cabinet. As President Vucic stated, two concept are being considered - a simple coalition, and  what's known as "a concentration government" (a government where all parliamentary parties participate.)

"A simple coalition with one political party, and the other a kind of concentration government, due to the (expected) wave of coronavirus in the fall, and because of Kosovo and Metohija, but also to find a way out of the economic crisis, so we can then go to the parliamentary elections in a year or two," he said, and added that he was closer to the first concept.

Another unknown for now is that it can't be said with certainty whether the SPS, a partner of Vucic's Progressives (SNS) in the past eight years in power, will continue in that role, or join the opposition. In his appearance on TV Prva on Saturday Vucic did not want to specify with whom the SNS would form a new government and said that the decision on that will be made after the meeting in Washington, i.e. after September 4.

"The final decision will be made soon," said Vucic.

(Telegraf.rs)