Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Israeli drone strikes vehicle in Khirbet Selem, one martyr reported.
Reuters: US military carried out a new strike targeting a ship in the Caribbean Sea
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Israeli raids targeted a cement plant, an asphalt factory, and fuel tanks in the Ansar area in South Lebanon
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: A series of violent Israeli raids targeted the outskirts of the town of Ansar
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Israeli warplanes raided the outskirts of the town of Shmestar in Bekaa, eastern Lebanon
Donald Trump will speak with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Thursday: White House
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in South Lebanon: Israeli warplanes raid the town of Bnaafoul, Saida district
YAF: Israeli enemy will pay for this crime.
Yemeni Armed Forces: Son of Major General Al-Ghamari martyred alongside him in Israeli aggression.
Yemeni Armed Forces: YAF mourns martyrdom of Chief of the General Staff Mohammad Abd al-Karim al-Ghamari.

Kosovo blames EU for failure to negotiate normalization with Serbia

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 21 Nov 2022 23:18
  • 1 Shares
3 Min Read

Kosovo sees that the European Union was behind the collapse of the talks with Serbia in light of the number plate row between the two.

  • x
  • Kosovo's Prime Minister Albin Kurti speaks during an interview with Reuters at his office in Pristina, Kosovo August 10, 2022 (Reuters)
    Kosovo's Prime Minister Albin Kurti speaks during an interview with Reuters at his office in Pristina, Kosovo August 10, 2022 (Reuters)

Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti cast blame on EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell for failure to negotiate exact steps for an agreement on full normalization of relations with Serbia, local media reported Monday.

Earlier today, a summit for Belgrade and Pristina was held by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell amid the escalation in Kosovo, despite Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic's pessimism that a deal could be reached. The President and Prime Minister of Kosovo and the EU Special Representative Miroslav Lajcak attended the summit.

On Monday, Borrell held a new round of talks between Belgrade and Pristina amid heightened tensions in the border region. At the talks' conclusion, Vucic said the negotiations with the Kosovo authorities in Brussels on postponing the controversial measures of Pristina were fruitless.

"For reasons beyond my understanding, we were not able to reach absolutely any agreement. The Serbian side was completely constructive, and we accepted the amended texts ten times, but the Albanian side did not want to accept anything," the Serbian President stressed, as quoted by Serbian state news agency Tanjug.

"All the time they supplemented something impossible, so all I can say is that I want to collect my thoughts, I have saved all the papers [from the meeting] and will appeal to the citizens," Vucic added. 

On Sunday, Vucic did not expect Kosovo to backtrack on its decision to penalize citizens driving with Serbian-issued license plates and warned that the policy may lead the breakaway province to yet another escalation after November 21.

“The EU suggested that Kosovo doesn’t issue fines for illegal license plates and continue with warnings, while Serbia no longer issues plates with letter abbreviations of Kosovo cities," Kurti said, as quoted by the Kosovo Online internet media.

Related News

Kosovo receives Turkish kamikaze drones, Serbia condemns move

Donald Trump’s record on ending wars: Fact vs. claim

Kurti noted that this proposal was "unacceptable' since the EU, acting as a mediator, did not suggest further steps for signing a final agreement on full normalization of relations and rejected the previously agreed date, March 2023, according to the media.

Kurti believes that the whole European Union should have proposed March 2023 if Germany and France suggested it.

The Kosovar Government require local Serbs to re-register their car plates, demanding that they feature the EU-standard letter code of RKS instead of KM, the Serbian identifier for the disputed region of Kosovska Mitrovica on the border. October 31 was the deadline for the re-registration.

The main reason for the tension is the 2008 declaration of independence of Kosovo which Serbia does not recognize and encourages the Serb minority to remain loyal to Belgrade.

This month, Serbs in northern Kosovo resigned from public institutions in protest over the row on vehicle number plates.

The Serb representatives have since returned to Kosovo's parliament but not to other public bodies.

Pristina has declared that around 10,000 Kosovan Serbs with license plates issued by Serbia must replace them with plates from the Republic of Kosovo by next April, under a gradual plan that would involve warnings, fines, and road bans.

In the meantime, Kosovo police will start issuing fines on Tuesday for all owners of vehicles that have not been re-registered with the RKS license plates after the deadline set by the Kosovo Government ended on Sunday.

  • Serbia
  • Germany
  • France
  • belgrade
  • Kosovo
  • Pristina
  • Josep Borrell
  • European Union

Most Read

Iran strikes secret Israeli-US bunker under Tel Aviv high-rise

Tel Aviv high-rise struck by Iran hid Site 81, secret US-Israeli base

  • Politics
  • 14 Oct 2025
Palestinian journalist Saleh al-Jaafarawi in an undated image in Gaza, occupied Palestine (Social media)

Gaza Palestinian journalist Saleh al-Jafarawi killed by collaborators

  • Politics
  • 12 Oct 2025
drop site

New report details extensive Israeli arson in Gaza after ceasefire

  • Politics
  • 13 Oct 2025
Illustration of fists breaking shackles, representing the liberation of Palestinian detainees from Israeli prisons. (Illustrated by: AL Mayadeen English/Batoul Chamas)

4 prominent Palestinian detainees to be freed: Who are they?

  • Palestine
  • 13 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
The bodies of deceased Palestinians, held by Israel during the war, lie in plastic bags on the floor of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, Gaza, following their release, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025 (AP)
Politics

'Israel' returns 30 Palestinian bodies; some bear marks of torture

Gaza buried under 70 million tons of war debris as crisis deepens
Politics

Gaza buried under 70 million tons of debris, 20,000 lingering UXOs

Ex-White House adviser Ashley Tellis charged over secret files
Politics

Ex-White House advisor accused of amassing troves of top secret files

An Israeli soldier rests by a mobile artillery unit at a gathering point on the border with the Gaza Strip, in southern “Israel”, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025. (AP)
Politics

Global arms bans isolate 'Israel', yet its war machine keeps running

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS