BTRfan Tue Apr 30, 2013 10:36 pm
The treacherous dogs who call themselves the Serbian Parliament are set to betray their own people and recognize Kosovo!
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/blogs/kosovo-serbia-relations-an-agreement-at-last/
Kosovo-Serbia Relations: An Agreement at Last?
By Tyler Bellstrom on 1:43 pm April 30, 2013.
Category Blogs, Globe Beyond
Tags: European Union EU, Serbia
Serbian protesters waving the Serbian flag at Merdare border point between Kosovo and Serbia, a neutral zone, on Feb. 21, 2013. Serbia and Kosovo reached a deal on April 19, 2013 to normalize ties. (AFP Photo/Sasa Djordjevic).
Kosovo’s Prime Minister Hashim Thaci and his Serbian counterpart Ivan Dacic came to agreement on April 19 after long negotiations with European Union foreign affairs head Catherine Ashton. Newspaper reports were congratulatory to all parties involved calling it a milestone.
The two countries have been holding high-level talks for years, as Serbia has still not fully come to terms with Kosovo’s statehood — Kosovo has continued to be an international protectorate rather than a full state.
The agreement is a baby step towards normalizing relations between the two states. It is an agreement on the fate of the ethnic Serbians in Kosovo and a continuation of Kosovo’s agreed ascension pact into the European Union, which demand a decentralization of political power.
The agreement gives more power over institutions (police, courts, etc.) to Serbs in Serb-dominated areas and that NATO troops will be the security forces for the area rather than Kosovar Special Forces, but it is also a recognition that the government of Kosovo holds the area.
The Serbian government had been running parallel institutions in Serb-dominated areas, trying to control the populace by pumping money into the area, and with secret Serbian-backed militia and security forces. This step could be important depending on the reaction of nationalists in Serbia. If there is not a huge outcry, Dacic could eventually formally recognize Kosovo.
The agreement can be seen as an attempt by Serbia to get fully on track to be a European Union member state as normalizing relations with Kosovo is seen important to Germany and other members of the EU. The agreement for Kosovo and Thaci seems to be just part of a continuing path to enter the Euro zone that seems tied to Serbia’s acceptance.
Kosovo does not have full control of its institutions or its territory because of an inability to move out of United Nations administration, as Russia has protected Serbian interests by threatening to use their veto, and that there is still fear in other states in the European Union. This fear comes from a legal precedent being established for groups to declare independence or states to splinter (such as in Spain with their Basque and now, Catalonian, question).