US scholar: Kosovo genocide charges against Serbia won’t have US & EU support

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The announced Kosovo's lawsuit against Serbia for genocide during the 1998-1999 war will draw criticism from Belgrade, make dialogue more complex, and neither Brussels nor Washington will support it, Daniel Serwer, a Johns Hopkins University professor, has said on Friday.

In an interview with the Voice of America (VOA), he added the lawsuit would undoubtedly have consequences to Kosovo, Serbia and the international community.

Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti has recently said his Government works on the indictment for genocide against Serbia which they intend to file to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and some other Pristina official confirmed that had been the case.

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„I’m not a lawyer and cannot explain the legal aspect of the issue, but I believe the fact that the genocide charges related to Kosovo have not been before the International Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY) doesn’t mean Serbia cannot be sued for genocide before the ICJ,“ Serwer said.

However, he said he wasn’t sure in what capacity Kosovo could address the ICJ.

„The issue here is whether what happened was intended to completely or partly destroy national, ethnic, race or religious group. But, as I have said, it’s unclear if Kosovo can address the ICJ since it is not a UN member and not among the states from ICJ statute,“ Serwer said.

According to him, it’s too early to speculate about possible political consequences, and it should first wait and see whether „the ICJ will consider the case.“