UK foreign secretary urges Kosovo to make progress in talks with Serbia

PRISTINA, Kosovo — The United Kingdom’s foreign secretary gave assurances of Britain’s interest in the Western Balkan region while visiting Kosovo on Wednesday, urging both Kosovo and Serbia to make progress in normalization talks.

David Lammy was on the second day of a visit to Kosovo where he met with its senior officials, calling on Pristina to form a new Cabinet quickly following the country’s Feb. 9 parliamentary election.

Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s Self-Determination Movement Party, or Vetevendosje!, won 48 seats in the 120-seat parliament, falling short of a majority.

Lammy assured Kosovar officials that “the U.K. continues to play its essential role as a key friend and partner of this great nation.”

The secretary expressed support for the EU-facilitated Kosovo-Serbia normalization talks.

“This this is a region that matters to Britain,” he said at a briefing after meeting with President Vjosa Osmani. “We want a lasting, peaceful normalization.”

Kosovo-Serbia ties remain tense and the 14-year-long normalization talks facilitated by the EU have failed to make progress.

The EU and the United States have urged Kosovo and Serbia both sides to implement agreements reached two years ago that include a commitment by Kosovo to establish an Association of Serb-Majority Municipalities and Serbia’s obligation to provide de facto recognition of Kosovo.

“I hope that the next government will address all citizens needs, including by making progress to integrate Kosovo Serbs and engage vigorously in the EU-led dialogue,” said Lammy.

Around 11,400 people died in the 1998-1999 war in Kosovo, mostly from Kosovo’s ethnic Albanian majority. A 78-day NATO air campaign against ended the fighting and pushed Serbian forces out.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, a move Belgrade and its key allies Russia and China refuse to recognize.