Executive Director of the European Fund for the Balkans Hedvig Morvai believes that in the case of Kosovo and Catalonia there may be parallels and similarities, but that the context and power relations are different, reports today Radio Television of Serbia (RTS).
“The case of Catalonia is taking place in one EU member state, and Serbia is not even today. Also, for the state that existed at the time when secessionist movements appeared in Kosovo, one cannot say that democracy existed,” Morvai told Tanjug agency, reports RTS.
“It’s a huge difference and that’s why it’s hard now to insist on some justice – why they can do it this way, and they could not do it,” Morvai said, stating that in this context, it is possible to talk and about the case of Cyprus, and not just Catalonia.
Morvai recalls that Brexit has taken place in Europe and that Britain now, in one certain position, negotiates its way out.
“But, let’s say that Slovakia comes up with leaving the EU, it would certainly not be in the same position as Britain. We cannot ignore reality. We need to insist with legal path the international law, but we need to know where we are, and where we are going,” explains Morvai, explaining the importance of the position from which the state tries to prove something.
When it comes to Serbia, the Executive Director of the European Fund believes that it is more important to use resources to resolve the issue with Kosovo in the contexts in which we are, and that is the process of European integration.
She notes that important mechanisms have been put in place, such as the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue.
“I believe this is what remains to us, and we need to make the best use of it,” Morvai says.
According to her, neither Serbia nor Kosovo can become a member of the EU if the issue of borders is not resolved, as the EU makes it clear – that such a mistake will not be repeated again, reports RTS.
She adds that the EU will certainly be very serious about the issue of Spain and Catalonia because Spain is an important member of the EU.
“Serbia is on the path to the EU and needs to do a lot to get its membership, and it will in no way be a priority in relation to the situation that is happening in Spain, and even in relation to other crises, Morvai concluded.
Former UN special envoy in former negotiations on Kosovo’s status Albert Roan estimates, in the context of the referendum on independence of Catalonia, that there are completely different prerequisites and norms for secessionist tendencies in different countries of Europe.
Roan, in the text for the Vienna based Presse, believes that each case must therefore be assessed separately, whereas the right to secession should be based on whether a minority in their own country is fundamentally discriminated against. “None of the circumstances related to Kosovo has anything to do with Catalonia,” Roan said in his article.
