Serbia and Kosovo sign landmark agreements
Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucic. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.
Serbia and Kosovo have signed a series of deals which have been hailed by the European Union’s foreign policy chief as “landmark achievements”.
Under the terms of the agreements, Kosovo will get its own international dialling code, while ethnic Serbs in the north of the country will enjoy greater to rights to manage the local economy and education system.
There were also deals on telecommunications, energy and the management of the Mitrovica Bridge, which separates Albanian and Serb communities in the north of Kosovo.
Talks were mediated by the EU’s foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini. Observers say the deals could eventually lead to the normalisation of ties between the two countries.
Kosovo – which has a predominantly ethnic Albanian population – split from Serbia in 2008, a decade after the outbreak of a bloody conflict between Belgrade and Kosovar separatists.
Both sides want to join the EU, which has demanded that Serbia normalise ties with its neighbour as a condition of entry.
“This is a big achievement for the whole of Serbia and it means there are no longer any obstacles, nothing stands on Serbia’s way towards Europe,” Serb President Aleksandar Vucic said.