On 5 November, during the 26th meeting of the CoR's Working Group on Relations with Western Balkans, ECR Member Matteo Bianchi drew focus to the historic economic normalisation agreements signed on 4 September 2020 between Kosovo and Serbia.

The agreements were struck between Kosovar Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić at a ceremony hosted by President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington, DC. In reality it means that Kosovo and Serbia have agreed to cooperate on a broad range of economic issues.

Under the terms of the agreements signed Serbia will suspend its efforts, both official and unofficial, encouraging other states to either not recognise Kosovo or to revoke existing recognition. In return, Kosovo will not apply for new membership in international organisations for the same time period.

Mr Bianchi, Member of Morazzone Municipal Council (Varese province) and Member of the Italian Parliament, enquired about “how the historic normalisation agreements will impact the broader cooperation in the region". With the agreements seeking to increase economic growth and job creation, and the opening up of border crossings, Matteo Bianchi wanted to explore if the agreements would demonstrate the tangible benefits of cooperation.

In attendance at the meeting were H.E. Ambassador Astrit Zemaj, Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of Kosovo in Brussels as well as Ms Mary Teresa Moran, Deputy Head of Unit (Kosovo and North Macedonia) in the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR) of the European Commission.

The aim of the CoR's Working Group on Relations with Western Balkans is to foster permanent dialogue with political representatives from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo, and observe the reform process in these countries, and in particular the specific reforms related to decentralisation.