Activist and journalist Blerim Shala has stated that the idea of exchanging territories between Kosovo and Serbia was closely linked to formal mutual recognition between the two states.
In a conversation on the PIKË podcast on Koha, Shala explained that this idea had taken shape as part of international efforts to reach a final agreement, but there was no concrete plan as discussions did not reach that stage.
According to Shala, the proposal was built on the principle that formal recognition would first occur, and then discussions would be held on the correction of borders peacefully, in accordance with international principles.
He emphasized that this approach was linked to the engagement of American diplomat Wess Mitchell, with the aim of removing Russian influence from Serbia.
"The idea was Wess Mitchell's, absolutely, because he started from the principle of removing the Russians from Serbia. Vučić told him, in order to remove the Russians from Serbia, I have to do the work, to make an agreement with Kosovo. But, the idea was for formal, mutual recognition between the two states, as we said earlier, when two states recognize each other, you then correct the borders, even if it doesn't happen, because it is the Helsinki principle of 1975. So, that it is allowed in a peaceful manner," Shala said.
In this process, the mediation of the European Union, namely Federica Mogherini, also played an important role, who, according to Shala, had openly spoken about formal recognition during meetings with representatives of the parties, including Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić. Shala claims that in these meetings it was made clear that mutual recognition was the main topic of the dialogue.
He added that the idea also had support from other American officials, including John Bolton, although the latter, according to him, had come at a late stage in the process.
Speaking about the content of the discussions, Shala denied that there were any concrete plans for the division of Kosovo or border designs on the table. He stressed that there was no discussion about the border on the Ibar River and that, according to him, no Albanian politician would accept such a solution.
However, he admitted that the general idea had been for part of the north to be connected to Serbia, but without including North Mitrovica, describing this as a hypothetical scenario that had never reached a concrete stage of negotiations due to opposition from both sides, as well as Germany and Great Britain.
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