Ljajić: Kosovo impairing relations with U.S.

As a subject, Kosovo is impairing all relations between Serbia and the U.S., says the president of the National Council for Cooperation with the Hague. Rasim Lajic, who is in Washington discussing Kosovo and Serbia’s cooperation with the Hague with representatives of the U.S. administration, told Beta there were important differences of opinion about Kosovo. Ljajic: Kosovo impairing relations with U.S. “My impression is that Kosovo is an absolute priority for the State Department and administration, and that’s a theme where we have more differences of opinion than over cooperation with the Hague,” said Lajic. On every other matter, he added, agreement and willingness for enhancing relations had been achieved, and American officials were especially interested in the issue of goods transportation from Kosovo to Serbia. Lajic told U.S. officials that Serbia was interested in the unhindered movement of goods between Serbia and Kosovo, but that it was unacceptable for those goods to bear the stamp of the Republic of Kosovo, a state Serbia does not recognize. “I said that it is unacceptable for Serbia for goods to carry the tag ‘Republic of Kosovo’, as even the CEFTA agreement is signed by UNMIK-Kosovo, and not the Republic of Kosovo,” he added. Ljajic was speaking with the National Security Council’s Director for Southeast Europe Katherine Helgerson and Assistant Secretary of State Stuart Jones. He pointed out to U.S. officials that the six-point agreement signed at the UN was not being applied in Kosovo in the slightest, particularly in the areas of justice, police and customs. U.S. officials, he said, were encouraged by the fact that Serbia was doing all it could to finish cooperation with the Hague, and were convinced there was total resolve to locate Ratko Mladic and extradite him to the Hague. Lajic, who is the leader of the Sandzak Democratic Party, will attend the traditional prayer breakfast with Serbian Renewal Movement leader Vuk Draskovic, G17 Plus’s Vlajko Senic and the Democratic Party of Serbia’s Nenad Popovic. The prayer breakfast has been held for 57 years, every first Thurday in February, when the U.S. president, Congresspeople, important politicians and officers and guests from around the world join in prayer in the U.S. capital. Rasim Ljajic (Tanjug, archive)

Ljajić: Kosovo impairing relations with U.S.

“My impression is that Kosovo is an absolute priority for the State Department and administration, and that’s a theme where we have more differences of opinion than over cooperation with the Hague,” said Lajić.

On every other matter, he added, agreement and willingness for enhancing relations had been achieved, and American officials were especially interested in the issue of goods transportation from Kosovo to Serbia.

Lajić told U.S. officials that Serbia was interested in the unhindered movement of goods between Serbia and Kosovo, but that it was unacceptable for those goods to bear the stamp of the Republic of Kosovo, a state Serbia does not recognize.

“I said that it is unacceptable for Serbia for goods to carry the tag ‘Republic of Kosovo’, as even the CEFTA agreement is signed by UNMIK-Kosovo, and not the Republic of Kosovo,” he added.

Ljajić was speaking with the National Security Council’s Director for Southeast Europe Katherine Helgerson and Assistant Secretary of State Stuart Jones.

He pointed out to U.S. officials that the six-point agreement signed at the UN was not being applied in Kosovo in the slightest, particularly in the areas of justice, police and customs.

U.S. officials, he said, were encouraged by the fact that Serbia was doing all it could to finish cooperation with the Hague, and were convinced there was total resolve to locate Ratko Mladić and extradite him to the Hague.

Lajić, who is the leader of the Sandžak Democratic Party, will attend the traditional prayer breakfast with Serbian Renewal Movement leader Vuk Drašković, G17 Plus’s Vlajko Senić and the Democratic Party of Serbia’s Nenad Popović.

The prayer breakfast has been held for 57 years, every first Thurday in February, when the U.S. president, Congresspeople, important politicians and officers and guests from around the world join in prayer in the U.S. capital.