Professor at the “Johns Hopkins“ University in the US and expert on Balkans Daniel Server said that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic is waiting for a favorable geopolitical moment to achieve his goals regarding Kosovo, reports the Kosovo newspaper “Koha Ditore“, referring to an interview Server gave to an Albanian media outlet.
Serbia does not recognize the independence of its former province of Kosovo, declared in 2008. The two countries have been engaged in EU-mediated dialogue to normalize relations since 2011 and have reached several agreements, but not all have been implemented.
“It is clear that Serbia under Vucic is waiting for a geopolitical opportunity in which it can take at least northern Kosovo (which is predominantly populated by Serbs – ed. note), because it is not interested in the other part of the territory (of Kosovo), as it would face a guerrilla war that would be destructive for Serbia“, said Server in his interview with “A2 CNN“ (A2 CNN).
He also spoke about the US military presence in Kosovo, stating that in the future the number of US forces may decrease. According to him, Kosovo needs to prepare for such a scenario and strengthen its strategic partnerships.
According to Server, Albania, which is part of NATO, could play a major role in ensuring Kosovo's security by increasing the number of its military there if necessary.
According to the American professor and expert, the strategic priority for Kosovo should remain the country's accession to the European Union and NATO, as integration into the Alliance would solve many of the security challenges facing the country.
However, he stressed that the process of accession to the EU and NATO could be hindered by the lack of a stable government, adding that the world will not wait for Kosovo to overcome its political impasse.
“Kosovo should lobby to join NATO as soon as possible (...) However, it is difficult to imagine that NATO will accept a new member that does not have a stable government“, he concluded Server.