• Monday, 25 November 2024

Kurti: Pristina and Skopje should prevent Serbia from spreading Russian and Chinese interest in the region

Kurti: Pristina and Skopje should prevent Serbia from spreading Russian and Chinese interest in the region
Pristina, 3 June 2022 (MIA) – The Kosovo government revealed Friday that its president Albin Kurti had reiterated his opposition to the initiative launched by North Macedonia, Serbia and Albania in a response to a letter sent by his Macedonian counterpart Dimitar Kovachevski inviting him to attend the Open Balkan Ohrid Summit on June 7-8, MIA’s Pristina correspondent reports. Media outlets in Kosovo report that Prime Minister Kurti didn’t explicitly rejected Kovachevski’s invitation, but it is implied in the letter that he doesn’t intent to take part in the upcoming Open Balkan summit. Kosovo is engaged in the Berlin Process, adopted by the six Western Balkan countries at the 2020 Sofia Summit, and it is fully supported by the EU, says Kurti’s letter. “The Republic of Kosovo welcomes regional cooperation based on the principles of equality, which will eventually benefit the citizens. To that end, we are actively engaged in the Berlin Process, which covers many regional initiatives, including the Common Regional Market, adopted by the six Western Balkan countries at the 2020 Sofia Summit and fully supported by the European Union,” reads PM Kurti’s letter to Kovachevski. According to him, both countries share joint values and joint aspirations to join the EU. “We also share the joint belief in freedom, democracy, justice and respect of human rights and liberties, freedom of the media and freedom of expression in a political environment where the opposition cannot be kept silent, where it is thriving and can win the coming elections. This is the reason (…) why our two countries are aligned with the EU’s foreign policy, including the condemnation of the unprovoked occupation of Ukraine by Russia,” says Kurti. Pristina and Skopje, the Kosovo PM notes, should work together to prevent Serbia from spreading its Russian and Chinese interest in the region. “Having in mind our joint values, it is in our interest to work together to prevent Serbia from spreading its Russian and Chinese interest in our region, denying the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Kosovo and blocking the equal opportunities of the Kosovo citizens,” Kurti tells Kovachevski in the letter.