Vllasi: Annexation of Presevo valley to Kosovo not realistic (N1, Beta)
Albanian political analyst Azem Vllasi said that the annexation of the Presevo valley to Kosovo is not a realistic option.
Vllasi, a senior communist official in Kosovo during the 1980s, said that the annexation of that part of southern Serbia is something that everyone in Kosovo wants.
He told Pristina-based KTV that President Hashim Thaci’s insisting on the annexation of the Presevo valley is not a realistic option.
“If someone convinces Serbia to give us that entire territory that would be alright, it would be a union with the valley but if we start drawing borders Serbia can say that there are villages which have been abandoned,” he said.
Vllasi believes the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue will fail if it does not result in mutual recognition.
He said Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj’s government shouldn’t fall over the tarrifs imposed on goods from Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
“That should absolutely not happen. The revoking of the tariffs as a condition to continue the dialogue was set by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic so now it turns out that Vucic is toppling the government,” he said.
According to Vllasi, the tariffs have achieved their goal and now Pristina should take the advice of the US.
“International players and the US say that the tariffs should not be the reason why the dialogue has been blocked, they want the door opened for the dialogue because the Americans and Brussels have grown tired of us, of the dialogue with Serbia,” Vllasi said.