The German press interprets the story of the ethnic demarcation of Serbia and Kosovo in two ways - as a chance for a solution to finally come from the region itself and as a danger that can lead to chaos in the entire Balkans, reports Deutsche Welle.
Andreas Ernst, an excellent expert on the Balkans, writes in Switzerland's Neue Zircher Zeitung that a new negotiation space has opened from the White House, where the administration of President Donald Trump does not respect old taboos.
Ernst says EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn has pushed back against Chancellor Angela Merkel and her hardline stance on fixed borders by saying it was a bilateral conflict, not a precedent for all disputes.
Stating that among experts in the region there is a reluctance due to a possible domino effect in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Macedonia, Ernst says that such tones were heard from Republika Srpska without consequences even during the declaration of Kosovo's independence.
"Other experts see here an opportunity for the two sides to decide on their own, and not for European diplomats to do it for them. However, this is only valid under two conditions: an absolute renunciation of violence and the obligation to confirm any solution in referendums in the affected municipalities and two states." , Ernst stated.
Karl Bilt, former Swedish foreign minister, EU special envoy for Yugoslavia and high representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, says that there has been a "return of the idea that it is simple and even conducive to stability to create monoethnic states in the Balkans".
"But that's an illusion, as the region's past has shown," Bilt said.
He assesses that the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, has a strong position in Serbia and has a lot of influence on the media, but that the political system of Kosovo is very fragmented, which is why it will be difficult for the Kosovo parliament to approve the renunciation of the north of Kosovo.
"But that does not diminish my concerns. Because the fact that Washington and partly the EU approve such a solution or do not oppose it is an encouragement for all politicians in the region who dream of creating mono-ethnic states," said Bilt.
He states that he has the impression that the US is no longer "ready to take responsibility for its policy" and that it will leave things to Europe, which is "inert at best".
On Han's position and the silence of EU High Representative Federica Mogherini, Bilt says that it is unrealistic to think that the consequences of the exchange of territories can be isolated.
"As far as I understand, Han said that there must be institutional guarantees that such a solution will not be a model for other conflicts. But they can sign as many guarantees as they want - that will not prevent such a policy from serving as an inspiration in other parts of the Balkans," he said. Bilt.
The newspaper Frankfurter Rundschau writes that according to diplomatic sources, the presidents of Kosovo and Serbia, Hashim Thaci and Aleksandar Vučić, already have an agreement on the exchange of territories based on ethnic criteria.
"There is support for it in the EU as well. Apparently, France has nothing against such a solution, and the US under Trump has moved to that line. The only country that clearly opposed it is Germany. Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel understood that this is playing with fire that can have unfathomable consequences for BiH and Macedonia and lead the entire region into chaos," writes Frankfurter Rundschau.
The newspaper adds that both Great Britain and Sweden are against the change of borders, with the assessment that the victory of the ethnic principle in the Balkans would "endanger the peace policy of the West in the last thirty years".
"On September 7, Vučić and Thaci should come to Brussels again. On September 9, Vučić will announce his plans in the north of Kosovo. The day is expected with uncertainty. If he declares for the division of Kosovo again, then Germany will definitely oppose it again. Thus, Germany "is considered the last guarantor of the West's peace efforts in the Balkans. In Berlin, this is done while reminding that Germany is too important in the Balkans to be simply ignored," the text states.
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