The U.S. will encourage the EU to open chapters in Serbia's accession talks, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said.
He on Thursday in Washington received Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic.
Blinken and Vucic conferred on the U.S. support to Serbia's EU pathway, the situation in the region, the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue and Serbia's foreign policy activities.
Political analyst Dusan Janjic said that “the ice was broken”, referring to the low profile of relations that existed between Washington and Serbia since 2010. He said that the visit of Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic to the United States is very important and presents building confidence in the policy led by the Serbian Prime Minister.
Kosovo is part of the Global Coalition to Counter the Islamic State (ISIL). The United States Special Presidential Envoy, General John Allen will visit Kosovo on Thursday for a one-day visit, where he will meet with leaders of the Kosovo institutions to talk about the progress of the Coalition and other regional issues, announced the US State Department.
The unresolved murder of the Bytyqi brothers is an obstacle in relations between Serbia and the U.S.
They were U.S. citizens whose bodies were found in a mass grave in Petrovo Selo.
So far, no government has managed to identify and punish the perpetrators of the murder of the Bytyqi brothers, and the current government announces the solving of this problem.
Speaking for TV B92 Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said that one of the foreign policy priorities is better relations with the United States. As one of the two obstacles he cited the unsolved Bytyqi case.
The US State Department report “Kosovo 2015:Crime and Safety” states that the international/transnational terrorism threat in Kosovo is similar to that faced by most European nations. “The presence of U.S. military units provides anti-American terrorists with potential targets. Kosovo has seen a rise in Islamic extremism in recent years. In the summer of 2014, police arrested over 60 individuals on suspicion of participating in or supporting the fighting in Syria and Iraq.
An annual report on Kosovo from the Bureau of Diplomatic Security with the US State Department describes the overall crime situation in Kosovo and the threat of regional and international terrorism as being similar to that in other European countries. “Kosovo has seen a rise of Islamic extremism over the last years,” the report states noting that 60 persons have been arrested in 2014 under the suspicion of participating or supporting fighting in Syria and Iraq.
A year into office, Aleksandar Vucic says ‘no turning back’ on EU membership bid
BELGRADE— Aleksandar Vucic, Serbia’s 45-year-old prime minister, has a reputation for combining brawn with brains.
A law student as the former Yugoslavia began to unravel a quarter century ago, Mr. Vucic, then a fervent Serb nationalist, studied hard during the week, notching up top scores in school. On weekends, he would follow his beloved soccer team, Red Star Belgrade, across the country, brawling with fans from top Croatian, Bosnian and other non-Serb teams.
The United States Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs, Hoyt Brian Yee, said on Thursday that the western Balkans are a significant source of foreign terrorist fighters going to Syria and Iraq, particularly when considered as a per capita proportion of the population. “Individuals are being radicalized and motivated to fight in Syria and Iraq by a number of factors. Economic stagnation and lack of employment options are factors. This is compounded by skepticism of citizens about their governments,” said Yee.
A senior U.S. official says Kosovo must set up a court to try former ethnic Albanian guerrillas for suspected organ-trafficking and the disappearance of hundreds of Serb captives if it wants to avoid Russia and Serbia dealing with the issue at the United Nations.
Stephen Rapp, U.S. Ambassador for War Crimes, made the comments in an interview with Koha Ditore daily on Tuesday. Rapp was in Kosovo to drum up support for the legislation that needs the backing of 81 out of 120 lawmakers, many of whom are former rebels.
Why the 11 German conditions, for the opening of Chapter 35 in the EU and Serbia negotiations, which are related to Kosovo, have become a major theme these days about which Ivica Dacic, Serbian Foreign Minister was talking about in all media? How is it related to the forthcoming round of negotiations between prime ministers of Serbia and Kosovo, on 21 April in Brussels? Interlocutors of Danas in Belgrade and Mitrovica gave different answers to these questions.