Serbia-Kosovo negotiations ‘a failure’

EU-sponsored talks between Serbia and its breakaway region of Kosovo have flopped, the country's media outlets reported on Monday, citing diplomatic sources.

 The negotiations, in Brussels, came ahead of a new deadline for implementing Pristina’s controversial plan to phase-out Serbian license plates, which is firmly opposed by Belgrade.

“The solution that has been proposed nullified the Brussels Agreement, which Serbia cannot accept,” an unnamed source told the newspaper Blic. “It seems that difficult and uncertain days await us, especially in the north of Kosovo and Metohija.”

The 2013 Brussels Agreement provided a roadmap to normalize relations between the government of Serbia and the authorities of the breakaway region. Belgrade has repeatedly said it has met all of its obligations, while accusing Kosovo of jeopardizing the deal. Back in March, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic claimed the Brussels Agreement effectively no longer existed.

Vucic is expected to address the nation over the talks failure late in the day, according to the newspaper. Speaking to local media on Sunday, the president warned Kosovo may turn into “hell on earth” should the local authorities not abandon their registration plates plan.