Two years ago, there was much more room for an agreement between Belgrade and Pristina, but unfortunately it was not used, Austrian diplomat Wolfgang Petritsch told BBC in Serbian, and added that it was necessary to change the format of the dialogue and proposed international conference after the elections in Kosovo and in Serbia.

Former EU envoy for Kosovo and one-time international high representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina Wolfgang Petritsch warned in Tirana Wednesday that missing the present opportunity to solve the Kosovo issue could lead to a frozen conflict in Europe.

Kosovo Foreign Minister Behgjet Pacolli said that he was against the idea of a correction of the Kosovo border and estimated that the solution was to establish a common economic zone, reports Serbian media.

Pacoli in Vienna, in his statement to Belgrade based news agency Tanjug, where he had a speech in the EU representation, said that there should not be divisions on the grounds of ethnicity, language, religion and anything else, but that we must live together and be committed to the economy.

Former EU envoy for Kosovo, Wolfgang Petritsch said in an interview for the Vienna-based Die Presse paper that the killing of the Kosovo Serb political leader, Oliver Ivanovic, puts into question the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue. He said he knew Ivanovic personally and added that he was one of the persons who sincerely tried to find a solution alongside the Albanian majority in Kosovo. “I don’t want to speculate about the background of the killing but it has seriously challenged the dialogue,” Petritsch said.

Solving the conflict between Serbia and Kosovo requires frank talks, says Austrian Balkans expert Wolfgang Petritsch. He believes Brussels must prioritize the relations of the western Balkan states with the EU.

DW: Mr. Petritsch, you say we are today presented with a historic opportunity to solve the Kosovo issue. What do you mean?