Kosovo and Serbian officials will make reciprocal visits to advance the process of normalizing relations, or to contribute to the dialogue facilitated by the European Union for this purpose.
This, at least, is stated in the 2014 Agreement on Official Visits, which Pristina and Belgrade reached.
However, despite this, both sides often block official visits, accusing each other of not respecting procedures.
On March 26, Kosovo blocked a visit by Serbian Health Minister Zlatibor Lončar, while on March 20, Serbia blocked a visit by Kosovo’s Minister of Culture, Youth, and Sports, Hajrulla Çeku.
Kosovo’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained its decision by saying that Prishtina initially sent a visit request to Belgrade, which was not responded to, and stated that Kosovo’s approach to official visits will remain based on reciprocity.
No explanation was provided from Serbia as to why Çeku’s request was denied, but Kosovo was accused of “directly undermining the normalization of relations.”
Radio Free Europe asked the European Union to comment on the recent blocking of visits by officials from Kosovo and Serbia, and to assess the damage such actions cause to the process aiming at normalizing relations.
As of the publication of this article, RFE did not receive a response, but the EU has previously stated that it expects all agreements reached, including the one on official visits, to be respected.
What Does the Agreement on Official Visits Say?
The 2014 Agreement on Official Visits states that both parties – through liaison officers – will inform each other of visits by their first- and second-category officials.
The first category includes: the president, prime minister, deputy prime ministers, the speaker of the parliament, and the ministers of the interior, foreign affairs, and defense.
The second category includes all other ministers, deputy speakers of the parliament, directors of government offices and security agencies, the heads of the Constitutional and Supreme Courts, the public prosecutor, as well as other persons who have physical security, such as religious leaders.
For visits by officials in the first category, a request must be made at least 72 hours in advance, while for visits by second-category officials, the other party must be notified at least 48 hours in advance.
The liaison officer is the one who mediates the process and confirms the acceptance of the visit. If there is no response within a specified period, the visit is considered approved.
The Agreement also stipulates that each party appoints an official who will have regular and simplified access to the other party and to whom both sides will provide logistical information to facilitate the preparation of visits.
Some Unrealized Visits
Sometimes during the year, one party or the other informs the public that an official visit has not been approved.
Last year, the European Union reacted several times to the blocking of visits, calling on both Kosovo and Serbia to adhere to the agreements reached.
For example, in early 2024, official Belgrade blocked Kosovo’s Minister of Internal Affairs Xhelal Sveçla from visiting the Preševo Valley in southern Serbia, where the majority Albanian population resides.
The European Union later announced that Minister Sveçla’s visit had been announced in accordance with the Agreement on Official Visits and urged Belgrade to allow it.
Then, in May 2024, Kosovo blocked the visit of the Director of the Serbian Government’s Office for Kosovo, Petar Petković.
A few days later, the visit of Serbian Patriarch Porfirije was also blocked, with Kosovar authorities explaining that visits from Serbia would not be allowed until official Belgrade stops violating the Brussels agreements and halts its campaign against Kosovo on the international stage.
The EU reacted again, stating that by blocking the visit of the Serbian Patriarch, Kosovo violated the agreement reached with Serbia within the framework of the dialogue.
However, both sides have also allowed some reciprocal visits of officials.
Thus, Albanians in Serbia were visited by Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minister Besnik Bislimi and Foreign Minister Donika Gërvalla, while Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and former Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić visited northern Kosovo.
The high-level political dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia was blocked after an armed group of Serbs attacked the Kosovo Police in the village of Banjska in Zvečan in September 2023, killing a police officer.
This attack followed high tensions, as Serbs in the northern part of Kosovo abandoned Kosovo’s institutions to protest the Kosovo Government’s decision to replace Serbian license plates with Kosovo ones.
Local Serbs erected barricades, held protests, and boycotted local elections. This led to the election of Albanian mayors in four municipalities with a Serbian majority.
The new EU envoy for dialogue, Peter Sorensen, visited Pristina and Belgrade this month, stating that his priority is to ensure a meeting between representatives of Kosovo and Serbia.
EU Foreign Policy Chief, Kaja Kallas, stated in February that she has taken into account criticisms of the current format of the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue and that, together with Sorensen, she will explore options to make it functional.
