Senator Murphy after returning to US: Kurti’s government stubborn in keeping the talks going

English

Gazeta Express

29/04/2022 13:13

Pristina is one of favourite cities in the world of the US senator Chris Murphy who visited Kosovo two weeks ago together with two other senators. Murphy said that in Pristina, they had two primary tasks. The first was to review the Afghan refugee processing program that operates out of Camp Bondsteel, a U.S. Army base south of Pristina, and to deliver a strong message to the new Kosovo government of Kosovo on resumption of the Dialogue with Serbia, Gazeta Express reports.

Murphy refers to Albin Kurti’s Government as stubborn when it comes to the dialogue with Serbia.

“Our second task was to deliver a strong message to the new Kosovo government in our meetings with the young President, Vjosa Osmani, and the activist-turned-Prime Minister, Albin Kurti. Kosovo would like to join both NATO and the European Union, but in order for this to happen, Serbia and Kosovo must come to an agreement in which both recognize the legal existence of the other state. A dialogue toward this end is in process, but both the Serbian and Kosovar governments have not made enough progress, and lately, Kurti’s government has been particularly stubborn in keeping the talks going,” Murphy said. The Democratic senator during his visit to Kosovo as part of a Western Balkan tour was accompanied by senators Jeanne Shaheen and and Thom Tillis.

Murphy said that inside meetings with Prime Minister Kurti and President Vjosa Osmani, they were rigorously consistent in their message on the need to get back into serious talks with Serbia. “On many domestic matters, we could easily find ourselves on different pages. I’m a progressive Democrat, Senator Shaheen is a more moderate Democrat, and Senator Tillis is a conservative Republican. I’ve travelled many times before with Shaheen, but this was the first time the three of us have worked together overseas. Our chemistry was natural, and in our meetings with Kurti and Osmani, I think they were both struck by the coordinated bi-partisan message,” Murphy wrote. /GazetaExpress/