As in the past, Kosovo and Serbia have leveled accusations at each other at the next United Nations (UN) Security Council meeting on Kosovo, held on Thursday in New York, while the United States has been clear in its stance that normalizing relations is the only way forward for the two countries.

"US President Donald Trump and the American people are listening carefully for your clear commitment to working and prospering together. We hope that both sides will reduce tensions and sit down at the table. We will work closely with leaders who look to the future, not the past. With real dialogue, not theater," said the Deputy Representative of the United States to the UN, Tammy Bruce, reiterating that the US remains committed to supporting stability in Kosovo and Serbia, in order to maintain stability in the Balkan region.

"The people of Kosovo and the people of Serbia are our friends. They deserve a future defined by security, economic opportunities and neighborly relations, not by political tensions or recycled problems," she said, among other things.

The Kosovo team has said that it does not expect normalization of relations with Serbia without clear accountability for the attacks in Banjska and Ibër-Lepenc and guarantees to stop the aggression, while the Serbian team has accused the Government of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti of suppressing the voices of local Serbs.

Kosovo accuses Serbia of carrying out both attacks, but Belgrade denies everything. In the attack in Banjska, a Kosovo Police officer was killed, while in Ibër-Lepenc there was an explosion of explosives that resulted in damage to critical water and electricity supply infrastructure.

Kosovo's position

Kosovo's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Glauk Konjufca, said at the meeting that Kosovo is continuing to guarantee stability through its democratic institutions, although, according to him, Belgrade is continuing to play its destructive role, citing Belgrade's attempts to interfere in the Kosovo elections to support the Serbian List, so that it reflects "its regime through a ruling party."

The Serbian List is the largest Serb party in Kosovo and in the last parliamentary elections on December 28, it secured nine seats in the Kosovo Assembly. The constitution guarantees this community 10 seats in the legislative institution.

"We call on Serbia to face its own reality and recognize Kosovo as an independent and sovereign state, not holding the entire region hostage to such hegemony," Konjufca said.

"Serbia and other malicious actors continue to weaponize minority rights and exploit Kosovo's multi-ethnic nature to promote division and disorder, undermining both our institutions and peaceful coexistence," he said.

The position of Serbia

Serbia was represented by Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric, who began his speech by saying that Serbia "is not part of the problem, but part of the solution."

Later, Djuric said at the meeting that he speaks “on behalf of those who are being held under pressure in Kosovo,” and claimed that for local Serbs in Kosovo, identity has become a source of insecurity, as “under the regime” of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, Serbs are identified as “the others” and that arrests, arbitrary attacks, and the “exodus of Serbs” cannot be ignored. He did not support his claims with anything concrete.

According to Djuric, the Law on Foreigners has caused great concern for Serbs in Kosovo.

"There was a real risk that people who had worked for decades would be treated as foreigners, losing their right to stay or to live in their homes. Their measures are not only legally unclear, but also indicate a continuation of the reformation of the situation. Serbs face numerous administrative and legal obstacles that make their lives more difficult, from accessing public services to exercising fundamental rights."

On March 14, the Kosovo Government agreed to provide temporary residence permits and recognize identity cards to members of the Serbian community who do not have Kosovo documents, as provided for in the Law on Foreigners and Vehicles.

The decision has been welcomed by the international community and Serbia.

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Among other things, the Serbian minister has called for the establishment of the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities, because, according to him, Serbs "have been left without the legal framework that was promised to them."

However, he said in part of his speech that Serbs are ready to extend a hand of cooperation, as the two peoples "are not destined to remain in conflict."

"There is room, especially in economic cooperation, to build trust and create a shared future, where the region approaches the European Union, becomes part of the common market and seizes development opportunities."

Under the mediation of the European Union, Kosovo and Serbia have been negotiating to normalize relations since 2011, but not all agreements reached have been implemented.

The Head of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), Peter Nicolaisen Due, has mentioned a number of processes that have attracted attention in Kosovo in recent months, starting with the constitution of the Assembly, the formation of the Government and the issue of the president, calling for the latter to have an epilogue soon and for new elections to be avoided.

He said he hopes that Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić will meet in the near future in Brussels.

Both the United States and Kosovo have insisted that the work of the UNMIK mission in Kosovo is over, while Serbia has insisted on its continuation.

The UNMIK mission operates under United Nations Resolution 1244, which was a compromise between Western countries and Russia to end the conflict in Kosovo.

This mission is neutral towards the status of Kosovo, while after the country's declaration of independence in February 2008, UNMIK transferred all powers to local institutions.