News.bg : there is a desire to jump out of the Russian orbit in Belgrade's behaviorThe desire of Belgrade and Pristina to find a way out of the impasse is not enough to resolve the Kosovo issue, writes News.bg .
The long-standing confrontation cannot be overcome by the whistle of the West. However, in Vucic's behavior, the author of the article saw the desire of the Serbs to jump out of the Russian orbit.
Dimitar PetrovThe tension between Serbia and Kosovo is a serious foreign policy issue in itself, but it seems destined to remain in the shadow of other events – the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and now the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.
And the epic of Bulgaria with the Republic of North Macedonia contributes to the fact that the news from Belgrade and Pristina remain in the background.
And there was a time when the whole world was watching the conflict in Kosovo. For us, it even became a "happy ticket to join NATO" - it is believed that Bulgaria's provision of an air corridor in the spring of 1999 confirmed the country's admission to the Alliance. Since then, the situation there is not so bloody, but quite explosive. And definitely noteworthy.
Until recently, it was believed that there was an unsolvable puzzle there - there is no politician in Belgrade who would be inclined to make such concessions to Pristina; even if he appeared, he would no longer be a politician, and maybe he would not have survived. That's just…
At the beginning of the month, none other than Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic himself said that "Serbia should continue negotiations with Kosovo on normalizing relations within the framework of the latest international peace plan in order to follow the path of EU membership." A few days later, Kosovo's Prime Minister Albin Kurti announced that he accepted the peace plan proposed by the EU, albeit with reservations related to granting greater rights to Kosovo Serbs, including the creation of an Association of Serbian Communities.
Is there really a Kosovo happy ending planned in the Western Balkans? And, what is even more interesting – is Serbia still turning "to the west" after decades of "turf wars" with the EU and the USA, which even reached the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia?
It's too early to answer the first question. The stated desire on both sides to find a way out is a necessary, but not sufficient condition. The pitfalls of a possible agreement are too acute, and the long-term confrontation is unlikely to be overcome only because it was ordered to do so "from the West". Or for the sake of the still imaginary "European future". Especially in the context of the problems that the EU itself is experiencing (the energy crisis, inflation), as well as the signals of weakness that Brussels radiates in the geopolitical arena. Recently, the "European perspective" has become devalued and is no longer as attractive as at the end of the last and the beginning of this century, when Bulgaria, for example, was in the position of Serbia and Kosovo.
The second question is suggestive.
At the end of January, Vucic again, together with outgoing Czech President Milos Zeman, condemned Russia's actions in Ukraine. The same Zeman, who for a long time was perceived as a pro-Russian statesman, violating the harmony of the "European choir" in relation to the Kremlin. Just like Vucic and Serbia in general.
If we go back, we will remember how much enthusiasm the Serbian president had at the opening of the gas interconnector between Bulgaria and Greece - he assured that the next such facility should connect Bulgaria with Serbia. So his country will be "freed" from Russian gas. The Bulgarian-Serbian gas connection was recently launched.
It is worth considering all these "European" signals from Serbia, which for many years has been considered Moscow's most loyal ally in Europe. But you shouldn't be surprised either.
At the end of last year, I hinted that Belgrade's "European perspective" should not be underestimated, and reminded that historically Serbia had good relations with Western Europe and the United States, and the last decades of relative isolation are rather an exception. Putting our Western neighbor "on European rails" should not surprise us, although so far the signals are mostly one-sided. In Brussels, Paris and Berlin, and in Washington, they probably paid attention to this "turn" of the Serbian head of state. Recognition by the European Union is only a matter of time, and if this suddenly does not happen, the blame will be entirely on Europe – to miss such a historic chance to consolidate not only the Balkans, but also the continent as a whole.
Of course, Serbia's "European perspective" is not equal to the "Euro-Atlantic" one. The topic of "NATO" is extremely painful for the Serbs, Vucic himself spoke about it the other day. But there is no doubt that the Serbs are trying to jump out of the Russian orbit.
The latter in no way means that relations between Belgrade and Moscow will be severed. There is hardly smoke from the scandal about the ties between Serbia and the Wagner PMCs without fire, and the fact that Russia and Serbia are playing in the same team (Skopje) in the Bulgarian-Macedonian dispute is more than obvious. However, the geopolitical flexibility demonstrated by Serbia is becoming more noticeable. There is something we can learn.
Alexander Vucic gives the impression that he is trying to maneuver between Moscow and Brussels. Always with Europe, never against Russia – by analogy with the phrase uttered, as they say, by Tsar Boris III during the Second World War. It is strange that Belgrade behaves this way when EU-Russian relations are at their lowest point, but in the medium and long term, this step may bring Belgrade bonuses.
And if/when this happens, we will be bitter that things are getting better for the Serbs, and we have not been able to enlist the support of Europe in our disputes with Skopje.
And this is also the current Serbian diplomacy does not follow the precepts of Pasic…
According to legend, Serbian Prime Minister Nikola Pasic once told the Serbian Ambassador in Constantinople: "In order to pursue politics, you either need to get money or get your ass kicked. There is no money – go ahead!"
