Zoloturn (Illustration), Photo: Shutterstock
For more than eleven years, the Swiss Foreign Ministry has been discreetly organizing talks between high-ranking officials from Belgrade and Pristina in the small Swiss town of Solothurn, away from the public eye, the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) daily reports today.
NZZ quotes a source as saying that the talks in Solothurn were attended by Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Đurić and Pristina’s chief negotiator Besnik Bisljimi, among others. The newspaper adds that representatives of the European Union have also been invited to attend, although they were initially very skeptical about the meetings.
“The goal of the talks was never to reach some grand peace agreement. But discreet dialogue helps build trust. The politicians who participate in them learn how the other side thinks. They get to know each other and exchange phone numbers. This often helps de-escalation at critical stages,” writes the NZZ.
The daily writes that on the sidelines of the meeting, scenes of Serbian and Kosovo politicians walking together through the old town center of Solothurn were often seen.
“Outwardly, instigators dominate on both sides. Politicians can hardly win votes with conciliatory voices. And in a small Swiss town, representatives of the two sides talk to each other so intimately that it surprised even experts on the conflict,” writes the NZZ.
The Swiss Foreign Affairs Department (EDA) confirmed to reporters that it organizes such talks in Solothurn two to three times a year. The last such meeting was held in early December, the daily writes, adding that the Swiss ministry’s partner is the American non-governmental organization Council for Inclusive Governance.
Roland Salvisberg, head of the EDA’s peace and human rights department, said that the dialogue has always focused on senior politicians and officials from important parties on both sides, but that they themselves decide who to send.
“Switzerland initiated these confidential talks. As a small town, Solothurn offers a space for discreet, honest conversations, away from the cameras, said Salvisberg. This is the exact opposite of the noisy diplomacy on big stages,” writes NZZ, citing the Swiss diplomat’s words that the organizers do not dictate any solutions but rather ask questions, and that Switzerland is trying to create the preconditions for normalization.
According to the newspaper, European Union officials, including former mediator in the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue Miroslav Lajčak, have occasionally been critical of Switzerland’s role, but in the meantime, Brussels’ attitude towards the talks in Solothurn has become positive, and Lajčak’s successor, Peter Sorensen, has already participated in them.
“These are talks that are complementary to the negotiations led by the EU,” Salvisberg said. “The EU and countries like Germany and France consider Switzerland’s contribution useful,” writes the NZZ.
“Switzerland has a deep personal interest in resolving the disputes between Serbia and Kosovo in a peaceful and sustainable manner and in accordance with the criteria of the rule of law,” NZZ quotes Roland Salvisberg as saying.
The daily reminds that Switzerland has a very large Kosovo diaspora, including around 60.000 Serbs and many people with Serbian roots. “Switzerland is therefore more exposed than in other conflicts. In addition, it has good contacts with numerous actors,” writes the NZZ.
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