KOSOVA’S GROWING SELF-ASSERTION

Janusz Bugajski, 8 October 2023

The most durable allies can disagree and openly express their national interests without damaging the core of their relationship. Kosova under the Kurti-Vjosa administration has demonstrated that the country is now mature enough not only to assert its distinct interests but also to stand up to immense pressures from the US and the EU to acquiesce to Serbia’s mini-imperialism.

Over the past few months, Prishtina has been under a tight international squeeze to allow for the creation of a Serbian municipal association that would in effect create a mono-ethnic entity paralyzing the functioning of the state. It has also come under unjustified criticisms from Brussels and Washington for electing and emplacing mayors in the northern municipalities in line with democratic norms.

It is understandable that all Kosova governments since the NATO intervention in 1999 have complied with the US an expression of gratitude for American leadership in facilitating the creation of the state. But gratitude without self-assertion becomes dependency and it can breed resentments among the grateful and arrogance in the protector. Hence, it is important for Prishtina to stand by its principles, its constitution, and its national defense and represent its citizens and not any outside power. As an example, the US and Poland have had several disputes in recent years but the bilateral alliance remains strong and Warsaw is not afraid to stand up to Washington on occasion.

Both Prime Minister Albin Kurti and President Vjosa Osmani have refused to buckle under international pressure. Kurti has asserted that the US and EU are appeasing Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić in the erroneous hope that he will become more pro-Western and anti-Moscow. Washington’s decision to penalize Prishtina in May following violent attacks by Serbian gangs that wounded several dozen NATO troops was correctly criticized by Kurti. The government decided to honor the election results regardless of the boycott orchestrated by Belgrade’s proxies in order to justify the violence.

Kosova’s subsequent exclusion from a U.S.-led military exercise and the US State Department’s insistence that Prishtina withdraw its police forces from near the municipal buildings clearly encouraged Vučić to stage further provocations. The Kurti government rightly stood its ground whereas previous administrations may have retreated for fear of losing the American patron.

For her part, President Osmani has called for sanctions against Serbia at a recent summit hosted by Spain of the 47-member European Political Community, a body set up to discuss security questions in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. She asserted that sanctions were the appropriate response to a deadly attack on Kosova’s police force in September when a contingent of 30 gunmen crossed the border from Serbia and killed one policeman. She underscored that the attack was not only committed against Kosova, but undermined peace, stability, and security in Europe as a whole.

Osmani went even further by pointing out that any talks with Vučić were pointless in the current circumstances. In effect, there is no “normalization” between Kosova and Serbia, only a slide toward violence and an attempted subjugation and partition of Kosova. Envoys Miroslav Lajčák and Gabriel Escobar ignore Vučić declarations that he will never recognize Kosova and therefore never “normalize” relations. Kurti and Osmani are simply pointing out that there is little point for any dialogue if one party refuses to accept the existence and equality of the other. We are witnessing the same posture in Moscow in its policies toward Ukraine, and where Western failures to defend the victim and deter the aggressor led to the current war.

The fears voiced by some Kosovar politicians that Prishtina’s self-assertion will cause a permanent rift with the US is exaggerated and counterproductive. In reality, any diminution of Kosova’s sovereignty will be perceived as a failure of US strategy. Western policies that appease Serbia’s aggression can lead to a new Balkan war in which Kosova will again be defended by NATO and US troops. And ultimately, no US administration will want to see Moscow celebrating an American defeat in the Balkans. Kosova needs to defend its independence, integrity, and security just like any European country and it will be respected for standing up for these fundamental principles of statehood.

Janusz Bugajski is a Senior Fellow at the Jamestown Foundation in Washington DC. His recent book is Failed State: A Guide to Russia’s Rupture. His forthcoming book is titled Pivotal Poland: Europe’s Rising Strategic Player.