US to get involved in talks; Kosovo to have army this year

Kosovo President Hashim Thaci says US Vice President Mike Pence “promised that the US would get directly involved” in the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue. “The time has come for direct involvement of the United States in the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia. Vice President Pence confirmed the commitment and engagement of the White House in this significant process,” Thachi told RTK. According to his, this engagement of the United States will give “new significance, dynamism and credibility to a successful conclusion of the talks.” He “explained that he discussed three issues with Pence, the main issue being the formation of the Kosovo army, which will take place this year”. The first issue was, as Thaci said, “a continuation of the dialogue on the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia as the final phase of this process, with a historic agreement on normalization and reconciliation, with the leading role of the EU”. He added that the US administration was “asking from Kosovo to resolve the issue of demarcation with Montenegro as soon as possible”.