Kosovo Section

Until the late 1990s, when considering the option of dividing Kosovo, it was usually believed that the territory of the Kosovo field itself would remain part of Serbia, and Metohija would become part of Albania . Different options for the division were proposed in the 1960s by the Serbian writer Dobritsa осosić , and in the 1990s, by the president of Yugoslavia Slobodan Milosevic , who even drew maps of Kosovo’s demarcation so that as many monasteries as possible entered the Serbian zone ^[1] . All the options offered before the early 2000s lost their relevance after the expulsion of most Serbs from the region (except for its northern part).

Today, speaking of the ethnic line of Kosovo’s dividing line, as a rule, they mean the separation of the northern part of Kosovo within the borders of three communities, as well as the part of Kosovsk-Mitrovica north of the Ibar River (the so-called “yellow line”). This territory is compactly inhabited by Serbs (more than 95%), while the rest of the Kosovo Serbs live mainly in enclaves inside Kosovo.

On February 14 and 15, 2012, a referendum was unauthorized by the governments of Serbia or Kosovo in northern Kosovo. Almost all voters (99.74%) opposed the recognition of the authorities of the self-proclaimed Republic of Kosovo.

Earlier, the partition of Kosovo was not officially supported by Serbia and the Serbian authorities in the north of the region, since the majority of Kosovo Serbs (55%) live outside Northern Kosovo. Most of the historical monuments of Serbian culture are also located outside it. ^[2]

However, the cultural significance of the region and the Serbian population in the enclaves is not the only reason for the rejection of the division of the region. Serbian society as a whole has also always reacted negatively to the possibility of division, since this would mean the creation of national autonomy for the Albanians in the country. Taking advantage of the precedent, other major national minorities of Serbia (Muslim Slavs and Hungarians) could demand the realization of their right to self-determination in the form of autonomy. But this, as is commonly believed in Serbia, the disintegration processes will not end and the new autonomies will require independence, just as the Kosovo Albanians demanded in the early 1980s. At the moment, the Hungarians do not constitute a majority in Vojvodina, which is considered by the Serbs a guarantee against secession in the region. Muslim Slavs, most of whom are Bosnians, do not have any territorial autonomy at all, which, according to the Serbs, does not give Muslims the right to claim any status for Sanjak . This position of the population largely explains the fact that the Serbs do not show proper activity in the division of Kosovo and in upholding the interests of its northern part.

The Kosovo section is facing strong opposition from Serbia’s neighbors in the former Yugoslavia: Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro. The main motive for the recognition of Kosovo’s independence by these countries was that Kosovo was a subject of federal Yugoslavia , which makes its independence logical in the context of the collapse of the country ^[3] . If Kosovo is seen as Albanian autonomy, which may gain independence, the question arises whether other national minorities ( Serbs and Croats in Bosnia , Muslims and Albanians in Montenegro , Albanians in Macedonia , Serbs in Croatia (including expelled ) have the right to, Hungarians and Muslims in Serbia) of the former Yugoslavia granting the same rights as Albanians in Serbia. For this reason, the US and the EU are against any revision of borders. Especially considering that after Kosovo, the next most important issue is the status of the Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina , which has long received the status of autonomy and is able to declare independence.

The Prime Minister of Albania stated in November 2011: “Partitioning Kosovo is an absurd idea, respecting the borders of Kosovo is in the interests of all countries in the region” ^[4] .

Former European Union representative in Kosovo Wolfgang Ishinger said regarding the division of Kosovo: “Such ideas are absolutely unacceptable. Whatever happens, this should not happen ” ^[5] .

Former Kosovo Deputy Prime Minister Hayredin Kuchi said: “This proposal is a provocation of Belgrade, we do not fully agree with him. We want to achieve cooperation between Kosovo Serbs and Albanians, and not separation ” ^[6] . Kosovo’s Prime Minister Hashim Thachi also deleted the section in September 2012: “This [section] will never happen. The section involves changing the borders of at least six countries ” ^[7] . “There is no division or separation of territories in relations between Kosovo and Serbia, there is no exchange of territories and there is no resettlement of the population,” said Kosovo President Atifete Yahyaga ^[8] .

The opportunity to discuss the division of the region along ethnic lines was offered by both the former president of Serbia Boris Tadic ^[9] and his opponent, the former prime minister, Vojislav Kostunica ^[6] . In July 2012, the new president of Serbia Tomislav Nikolic stated: “I will never be recognized as president in Pristina, and Serbs in Kosovsk-Mitrovica will never recognize the authorities of Pristina.” Ivica Dacic, the future Prime Minister, went even further by proclaiming: “I am convinced that the best solution is to divide Kosovo. The question is whether the Albanians and the international community will accept this idea ” ^[10] . On September 22, 2012, Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic confirmed the words he said earlier, saying: “I believe that the separation of Kosovo is the only way out of the current impasse. And I’m sure the Albanian authorities in Pristina agree with this, ”he told reporters in Belgrade. “Some people object, saying that this will cause protests in the region, while these people are silent about the fact that the division of Serbia also caused considerable upheavals” ^[11] .

Bosnia and Herzegovina - the idea to transfer the northern part of Kosovo to Serbia was supported by Prime Minister Milorad Dodik ^[1] . But in January 2013, being in the status of President of the Republika Srpska, he confirmed his words, saying: “The initiative for dividing Kosovo into two states, two peoples, which I support, is the last line of defense of protecting the interests of the Serbian population” ^[12] .

The President of Macedonia, Gheorghe Ivanov, said that he supported the continuation of the negotiation process and that he was against the division of Kosovo, as this could destabilize the situation in the region ^[13] . These fears are caused by the fact that Macedonia itself in the north-west of the country is compactly inhabited by a large Albanian diaspora, which makes up one third of the population, which could use the Kosovo partition as a precedent for separation from Macedonia, given that such attempts already took place in 2001.

Ex-Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic said that he did not support the idea of ​​dividing Kosovo, as this “would open the way for such decisions in relation to other countries in the region” ^[14] . In Montenegro itself, Albanians make up about 5% of the population who live compactly on the border with Albania and Kosovo.

Great Britain - “The Balkan map is completed,” said Foreign Secretary William Hague in October 2012, thus excluding the possibility of reconsidering the issue of Kosovo’s independence or dividing the region into Serbian and Albanian parts ^[15] .

US diplomats have repeatedly accused their European counterparts of indecision, which allows the Serbs to consolidate their control over northern Kosovo. “Failure to act quickly means the loss of northern Kosovo, which will reopen the Pandora’s box of ethnic conflict that began in the 1990s,” said US representative Christopher Dell in 2010, “It is time to end the years of drift in the north and change the dynamics of a growing division between the north and the rest of Kosovo. The current situation is unreliable and worsening. The goal is to stop the rot ” ^[16] .

Former Austrian Vice Chancellor Erhard Buzek proposed to divide Kosovo and said: “I agree that negotiations are the only way, within which issues, discussion of which seems impossible at the moment, should also be discussed, including the Kosovo section ... I see no reason why the international community does not approve the separation if Belgrade and Pristina agree on this topic. All the details of such a resolution to break the deadlock in Kosovo could be framed in the form of a “Kosovo Dayton,” where the international community would become the guarantor of the agreement. ” ^[17]

• James Ker-Lindsay, a senior fellow at the London School of Economics and Political Science, said Kosovo’s separation was a logical decision. In an interview with Politika, he stated that Belgrade has a chance over the next few months to achieve the separation of Kosovo and the establishment of greater autonomy for the Serbs in northern Kosovo. ^[18]
• Ivor Roberts, a former English ambassador to Yugoslavia , supported the partition of Kosovo. He said: “Not one side will like the partition of Kosovo, but an equally bad option for both sides will lead to stability rather than the existing Western plans, which will undoubtedly destabilize Serbia, and through Serbia and the entire region.” ^[19]
• Margaret Thatcher , British Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990: “And there should be no separation, an option that we hear more and more. Separation would be a reward for violence and ethnic cleansing. They [the Serbs] must admit defeat. And I am indifferent to Serbian requests to preserve their presence in most of Kosovo due to the fact that there are Serbian holy places. Such requests from those who compared Catholic churches and Muslim mosques with the earth, wherever they went, are cynical and on the verge of blasphemy. ” ^[20]

Serbian Patriarch Irenaeus, speaking at an event dedicated to the ninth anniversary of the events of March 2004 , said: “There is no question of recognizing or dividing Kosovo. It is necessary to find a just solution to the Kosovo problem, on which our fate depends. ”

After the independence of the Republic of Kosovo and its wide international recognition ^[21] within the borders of the former autonomy, the division of the territory in exchange for recognition of independence is becoming less and less attractive for the Albanian side. As part of Serbia, the Preshevskaya Valley continues to remain - an underdeveloped, but mainly populated by Albanian territory. In 1992, a local referendum was held there, at which the population spoke out positively on the issue of joining Kosovo . From 1999 to 2001, in the Prešev Valley, there was the Liberation Army of Prešev, Medvedzhi and Buyanovac (similar to the Kosovo Liberation Army ), however, in the conflict with the Yugoslav army, NATO sided with the Serbs, and the territory remained under their control.

Earlier in the history of Yugoslavia, there have already been cases of changes in the borders of Kosovo. In 1947, seven settlements of Kosovo were transferred to the Presevo community, four to the Bujanovac community, and a total area of ​​transferred territories of 85 sq. M. km In 1959, 45 households in the Rash region were transferred to the Autonomous Kosovo-Metohij Region ^[22] .

The population of the three southern communities of Serbia is heterogeneous. In Presevo, Albanians make up more than 90%, in Bujanovac, Albanians are 55%, and Serbs are 34%, in Medveji, two thirds of the inhabitants are Serbs, Albanians are only 26% ^[23] .

The possibility of exchanging the Preshevskaya Valley for Northern Kosovo in 2010 was allowed by the chairman of the Kosovo Assembly, Yakup Krasnici : “If some Serbs are not ready to live in the northern part of Kosovo and think they can separate, then Albanians from the Preshevskaya Valley are ready to join the region.”

In early 2011, the leader of the Democratic Party of Albanians of Serbia, Ragmi Mustafa, spoke out in favor of an exchange of territories between Belgrade and Pristina. He stated that the three Serb communities of Presevo, Medveja and Buyanovac “should join Kosovo,” while “northern Kosovo should join Serbia.” According to him, the corresponding proposal should lie on the table of the Brussels talks. “I think this is the future of our region,” Mustafa ^{[24] [25] [26]} emphasized.

On June 6, 2012, during an official visit to Croatia, Kosovo’s President Atifete Yahyaga stated that Kosovo has no territorial claims against any state, and the same is expected from neighboring states. “There will be no division of Kosovo, no division of Serbia, nor territorial exchanges between Serbia and Kosovo. These people should once and for all get rid of the ideas of the 19th century and realize that we live in the 21st century, ”Yahyaga said ^[27] .

According to Hashim Tachi, the main point of the talks in Brussels on January 17, 2013 for the Serbian government was “soil probing” regarding the exchange of Northern Kosovo for the Preshevskaya Valley. According to the Kosovo prime minister, Ivica Dacic personally made it clear that the Serbian authorities have a “desire for an exchange of territories” ^[28] .

In April 2013, Serbian Prime Minister Dacic said in an interview with German media: “I think that Serbs and Albanians could easily agree to a territorial exchange. But this would not be acceptable to Washington, where they believe that this could lead to a war in Macedonia. <...> Why should Macedonia be afraid of a decision on territorial exchange? The Skopje government posed such a threat by violating the law and recognizing Kosovo’s unilaterally proclaimed independence. What if Albanian-populated areas of Macedonia now declare independence? I hope that this does not happen ” ^[29] .

2018 Negotiations

In September 2018, the topic of border revisions was discussed at the highest level in EU negotiations with Serbia and Kosovo. The idea was previously supported by the president of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, citing the fact that the Serbs will ultimately require autonomy similar to Serbian autonomy in Bosnia and Herzegovina ^[30] . It is reported that the Territory Exchange Plan was supported by Federica Mogherini, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy ^[31] . The exchange also did not exclude the European Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and the expansion of Johannes Hahn ^[32] . Prior to this, in August 2018, National Security Advisor to the US President John Bolton said that Washington was ready for an exchange of territories between Serbia and Kosovo ^[33] . The President of Serbia refused to discuss this topic directly with the President of Kosovo, as it is believed, due to the fact that this is not about the division of Kosovo, but about mutual territorial concessions.