“U.S. supports Balkans’ Euro-Atlantic integrations”

U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Stuart Jones says that West Balkan countries could count on help from Washington. Jones stated that U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration was not pressuring any country, but that all countries that wanted to join Euro-Atlantic community could count on Washington’s wholehearted support and help. “U.S. supports Balkans’ Euro-Atlantic integrations” He told Voice of America that the most important issue was progress achieved in the American-Serbian relations after the visit of U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden to the region in May of last year. “He said then that we should leave aside our disagreements about Kosovo and commit to better mutual understanding, joint goals and cooperation in the region,” Jones said, and pointed out that as far as Kosovo was concerned it was necessary to find a way to make a concrete cooperation in order to achieve a better life of Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo. “The U.S. consider Kosovo to be a republic whose independence is irreversible. Our position is firm. Belgrade has got a different position – that Kosovo is still a part of Serbia. In the end we will have to come up with a solution,” added he. Jones pointed out that 65 countries had already recognized Kosovo. “Kosovo is a member of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF). Therefore, the trend is obvious.” Jones added that issue of “respect of Kosovo’s independence” was important for the region as a whole, that U.S. was neither demanding from Serbia to recognize Kosovo “right away” nor that it was necessary to solve all the differences at once, “because some of those issues take time”. Noting that other countries of the region have recognized Kosovo, Jones said he thought that Serbia should join them. Regarding the dispute about the northern, Serb part of Kosovo, the U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state said that America was committed to Kosovo’s “territorial integrity”. “We are supporting the integration of that part of Kosovo into Kosovo institutions. I think it is important that Pristina reaches out to the people living in this part of Kosovo, make them feel at home and that the success of new republic of Kosovo is in their interest,” said Jones.

“U.S. supports Balkans’ Euro-Atlantic integrations”

He told Voice of America that the most important issue was progress achieved in the American-Serbian relations after the visit of U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden to the region in May of last year.

“He said then that we should leave aside our disagreements about Kosovo and commit to better mutual understanding, joint goals and cooperation in the region,” Jones said, and pointed out that as far as Kosovo was concerned it was necessary to find a way to make a concrete cooperation in order to achieve a better life of Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo.

“The U.S. consider Kosovo to be a republic whose independence is irreversible. Our position is firm. Belgrade has got a different position – that Kosovo is still a part of Serbia. In the end we will have to come up with a solution,” added he.

Jones pointed out that 65 countries had already recognized Kosovo.

“Kosovo is a member of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF). Therefore, the trend is obvious.”

Jones added that issue of “respect of Kosovo’s independence” was important for the region as a whole, that U.S. was neither demanding from Serbia to recognize Kosovo “right away” nor that it was necessary to solve all the differences at once, “because some of those issues take time”.

Noting that other countries of the region have recognized Kosovo, Jones said he thought that Serbia should join them.

Regarding the dispute about the northern, Serb part of Kosovo, the U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state said that America was committed to Kosovo’s “territorial integrity”.

“We are supporting the integration of that part of Kosovo into Kosovo institutions. I think it is important that Priština reaches out to the people living in this part of Kosovo, make them feel at home and that the success of new republic of Kosovo is in their interest,” said Jones.