Washington not drawing red lines, Ambassador Scott says

NEWS 06.03.201911:07
FoNet/Zoran Mrđa

US Ambassador Kyle Scott said that Washington is not drawing any red lines in the search for a solution to the Kosovo issue.

Scott told Belgrade tabloid daily Kurir that the crucial thing is for Belgrade and Pristina to get back to the negotiating table, adding that any implementable, lasting solution the two sides come up with will get support.  

“We do not draw red lines, we do not determine what will happen. If what they agree stabilizes the region, if it can be implemented and is lasting, then we will probably support it but we are waiting for the sides to reach an agreement under European Union auspices,” he said.  

Scott said that US diplomat Philip Reeker does not have a plan for Kosovo as the media speculated in the past few weeks and wold not force anyone to do anything. Reeker was recently appointed to head the State Department office of European and EuarAsian affairs.  

The ambassador said that the 100 percent tariffs on Serbian goods imposed by the Kosovo government are counter-productive and do not support the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue. “The key thing is for Belgrade and Pristina to get back to the negotiating tgable. That should be everyone’s priority. Some people are playing games, have no tactics, take certain steps but the goal for Kosovo is to reach an agreement and the only way is to get back to the negotiating table,” he said.  

Scott said the agreement has to cover a number of things including economic relations, the status of the Serbian Orthodox Church, missing persons, war crimes and others. “There are a lot of elements which have to be included in the agreement but we believe that mutual recognition has to be at the heart of the normalization agreement,” the ambassador said.