The return of U.S. President Donald Trump to power could reopen discussions about the partition of Kosovo, warned Sonja Biserko, head of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia.
Speaking on the PIKË podcast with publicist Veton Surroi, Biserko noted that although there are no clear signals yet, increased support for the Serbian List party and the appointment of U.S. ambassadors of Serbian origin in Belgrade and Sarajevo are fueling perceptions that Serbia is gaining an advantage over Kosovo.
“With the return of the Trump administration, the partition option could reemerge,” Biserko said, adding that despite Serbia’s withdrawal from Kosovo’s structures under President Aleksandar Vučić, the shifting geopolitical landscape presents new risks for territorial disputes. She emphasized that reopening such issues would severely threaten regional stability.
Surroi, however, pointed out that the idea of Kosovo’s partition did not originate from the U.S., but from the leaders of Kosovo and Serbia themselves, with some backing from Albania.
“The Trump administration did not push for partition, but it tolerated it and left space for it to develop,” he said.
The discussion also touched on the impact of the ongoing war in Ukraine. Biserko warned that the unresolved conflict in Ukraine could have spillover effects in the Balkans, where frozen conflicts like those in Bosnia and Kosovo remain potential flashpoints.
She stressed the need for a more proactive European Union role in the Western Balkans.
“The EU must adopt a more offensive approach, moving beyond distant reports to real oversight and concrete efforts toward integration. Without this, progress in the region remains impossible,” Biserko concluded.
