Danish diplomat Peter Sorensen has been confirmed by the European Union ambassador for the position of the bloc's special representative for the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia.
Sorensen was selected by the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kalas, to replace Miroslav Lajčák in this position.
EU foreign ministers will give final approval on Monday, so that Sorensen can begin his term in early February.
The current envoy, Lajčak, expires on January 31st.
Radio Free Europe learned a few days ago from diplomatic sources in the EU that Sorensen's name had been sent to the bloc's member states for approval.
Do you know Sorensen?
Sorensen, from Denmark, has many years of diplomatic experience in EU structures. He is currently a Senior Advisor at the European External Action Service (EEAS) for Digital Diplomacy.
During his diplomatic career in the EU, Sorensen held several assignments in the Western Balkans. He served as the EU Special Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina and Head of the EU Office in Sarajevo. He was also Head of the EU Delegation in Skopje.
Previously, Sorensen worked as an advisor to the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), and was also the Special Representative of the EU High Representative in Serbia.
In the Balkans, he also worked in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) mission in Croatia.
His experience in the region is cited as one of the reasons why Kaja Kalas decided to make him Lajčak's successor.
Former Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto, who is also familiar with developments in the Western Balkans, also applied for the position of mediator in the dialogue.
The name of former President and Prime Minister of Slovenia, Borut Pahor, was also mentioned for this role. Last year, he admitted that he was interested in this position. However, in January of this year, he said that he would not run for this position, because he realized that it was more of a diplomatic than a political level that was sought.
Incidentally, during Lajčak's almost five-year mandate, Kosovo and Serbia reached an Agreement on the Path to Normalization of Relations.
The agreement, which has not been signed, is legally binding on the parties, the bloc said. The EU has accused Kosovo and Serbia of failing to start implementing the agreement, saying it would affect the path to European integration for both countries.
The dialogue for the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia, mediated by the European Union, began in 2011. Several agreements were reached during the process, but few of them were implemented.
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