Gabriel Escobar will replace Matthew Palmer in that position.

“The appointment is official, and I will take office on September 7,” Escobar told Tanjug.

In his new position, Escobar will be in charge of resolving numerous issues in the Western Balkans, as well as the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina.

He is considered an excellent connoisseur of the Balkans, and they say that he is an impartial diplomat.

For two years, from August 2019, Escobar was the US Deputy Ambassador to Belgrade, until the arrival of Anthony Godfrey, he was the charge d’affaires, that is, he headed the US diplomatic mission in Serbia.

He previously served in Baghdad.

On the sidelines of the two-day international conference “Prespa Forum for Dialogue” in Ohrid, Republic of Northern Macedonia, Prime Minister Albin Kurti, in addition to participating in the panel discussion, held a series of meetings with regional leaders and senior representatives from Europe and the USA.

According to a government statement, Prime Minister Kurti made a proposal on how the Western Balkans region could advance towards the European Union, through a new agreement and relationship, such as Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

During the day, together with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Donika Gërvalla, Prime Minister Kurti met with the US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, Philip Reeker, and the US Special Representative for the Western Balkans, Matthew Palmer.

Prime Minister Kurti and Minister Gërvalla also met with the European Union Special Envoy for Dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, Miroslav Lajçak, with whom they discussed the June 15 meeting in Brussels and the launch of a new dialogue process.

Also, Prime Minister Kurti had a joint meeting with the Prime Minister of Albania, Edi Rama, the President of the Democratic Union for Integration, Ali Ahmeti and the Vice President of DUI, Teuta Arifi.

Separate meetings were also held with the Slovenian MEP, Tanja Fajon, the former German MEP from the Social Democratic Party, Knut Feckeinstein and the professor of “Johns Hopkins” University, Eduard Joseph.

US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matthew Palmer said on Friday (June 4th) that the ultimate goal of the United States is to achieve mutual recognition between Kosovo and Serbia. However, he left open the possibility that Washington will support other modalities of the comprehensive agreement, if both parties agree.

“Our vision is for Serbia and Kosovo to be members of the European Union. But how can the two EU member states be if they do not know each other? This (mutual recognition) would open the European way for both.” “That’s why the United States sees mutual recognition as the best way to achieve that,” Palmer told Serbia’s N1 television.

Palmer and the European Union Special Representative for the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, Miroslav Lajcak, talked to the Belgrade authorities about the dialogue process and their visit there took place after their stay in Pristina.

Asked if there was a “Plan B”, or the possibility of reaching an agreement but not including recognition, the US diplomat replied:

“The agreement can be anything the two sides agree on. Our goal is to get the parties to sit down at the table and present what their red lines are, what they can and cannot do. We do not set the agenda, nor we do not determine the outcome, “he said.

The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vuiqiiq, and the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, are expected to meet in June, to continue the process of dialogue between the two countries, which began in 2011 with the mediation of the European Union, but was accompanied by some interruptions and reluctance. parties to implement a series of technical agreements reached./rel

The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vuiqi., Received this afternoon the EU Special Representative for the Dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, Miroslav Lajçak.

About half an hour later, DASH Special Envoy for the Western Balkans Matthew Palmer joined the meeting, which was held at the Serbian Presidency.

The Serbian president stated about this meeting on his Instagram profile.

“Good conversation with the EU Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue and other Western Balkans issues, Miroslav Lajcak, and with the State Department Special Representative for the Western Balkans, Matthew Palmer. “Soon the dialogue with Pristina will continue and I believe in the possibility of reaching a compromise solution”, wrote Vuçiqi, reports Zeri.info.

The meeting between them came shortly after Palmeri and Lajçaku stayed in Kosovo, where they held meetings with state leaders and Western diplomats with missions in Kosovo.

As Laçkaku said, the purpose of the visit is to prepare for a high-level meeting between the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, and the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vuiqiiq, which will be held in a few days in Brussels.

In Kosovo, Palmer reiterated the position that the US strongly supports the dialogue between the two countries, which should result in reaching a final agreement and mutual recognition.

However, Serbian President Vuiqiiq has recently warned that his country is under increasing pressure, but stressed that he is looking to get the most out of this dialogue for Serbia and its people.

“But the US and Western powers are asking Serbia to recognize Kosovo in one way or another. “They are not even trying to say it in other forms, but directly, with the mention of mutual recognition”, said Vuiqi., Emphasizing that the situation is not easy at all, and that no one is offering Serbia cakes and apples.

The resumption of the Brussels dialogue is expected to resume on 15 June. / Voice

Former Kosovo Ambassador to Austria and Australia, Sabri Kicmari, is highly appreciating the messages of the US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Matthew Palmer, recently given to Kosovo politics.

He stated in Info Magazine that these are the first signals of the new US administration that they will continue their commitment regarding the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, reports Klan Kosova. =

“It is seen that a new atmosphere has been created. “After the results of the February 14 elections, and after the US elections, Matthew Palmer has given the first signals that the US will continue to be committed to the dialogue between the Republic of Kosovo and Serbia, for the normalization of relations between the two countries.” .

“President Biden’s own letter to the Serbian president was a clear signal that they could record it on the analytical level as a kind of turning point, citing the end result of such a dialogue, which is mutual recognition, said in President Biden’s letter, which for me it is a very positive signal, and it seems to me that it is also important for the Serbian side to register that this path, this dialogue process will end with mutual recognition “.

“Based on what I was able to record from the information from the online meetings, these are friendly messages that we have been waiting for from the new Administration of President Biden and I believe that these signals are a good sign in preparing the climate for an equal dialogue with principles. and that consequently a process that should end with mutual recognition ”.