Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minister, Enver Hoxhaj, told Austrian daily paper Der Standard that the recent statements of Austrian Vice-Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache on Kosovo still being part of Serbia do not contribute to reconciliation between peoples in the Balkans or the normalisation of relations between Kosovo and Serbia. “In 2018, when the region is moving with a new speed towards EU membership and when reconciliation between people is a priority as much for the countries in the region as it is for the European Union, such a statement does not contribute to reconciliation,” Hoxhaj said. He noted that Strache’s statement was regrettable and surprising “when it is known that in the last 30 years Austria was the first door of support to Kosovo.”