Hungary to veto Kosovo's applications to EU bodies: Foreign minister

BELGRADE, Serbia

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto​​​​​​​ said Tuesday that his country will vote against Kosovo’s membership to European bodies.

Hungary’s position is that admitting Kosovo into certain European organizations would jeopardize the reaching of a compromise, he said.

"The premature admission of Kosovo by various European entities may jeopardize the search for reconciliation. Therefore, if there is a vote on whether to accept Kosovo as a member of the Council of Europe, the government will vote no," Szijjarto said after meeting Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic in Budapest.

Szijjarto said Hungary supports a peaceful solution and reconciliation through dialogue.

Kosovo submitted a signed application in December to the Czech Republic, which presided over the European Union at that time.

Spain, Slovakia, Greek Cypriot administration, Romania and Greece are EU member countries that do not recognize Kosovo’s independence.

Kosovo is the last country in the region to apply for candidate status and it occurred on the same day that Bosnia and Herzegovina was confirmed with the status in the EU.

Speaking about relations between Hungary and Serbia, Szijjarto thanked Serbia for enabling 4 billion cubic meters of natural gas to reach his country via the Turkish Stream.

He said Hungary will provide additional assistance to Serbia in the supply of gas and other energy sources.

Dacic said the Kosovo issue can only be resolved through concessions.

''We believe that the issue of Kosovo can only be resolved by compromise and we are very sensitive that it is approached in accordance with the policy of double standards when it comes to territorial integrity. Either territorial integrity is a principle, or it is not. You can't be in favor of preserving territorial integrity in one case, and say it the other way around,'' said Dacic.

He said Serbia has three “red lines” when it comes to Serbs in Kosovo -- the first is to respect all signed agreements.

"Our second red line is that we will not recognize Kosovo's independence and accept its membership in the EU. Our third red line is the security of Serbs in Kosovo,'' said Dacic.

Following his meeting with Szijjarto, Dacic also met Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

Serbia objects to Kosovo's EU membership

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said by applying for candidate status, Kosovo violated the Washington Treaty, Brussels Treaty and UN Security Council Resolution 1244.

Vucic criticized the international community and Western partners for not respecting the agreements.

In 2020, Serbian and Kosovar leaders met in a US-sponsored two-day dialogue in Washington where they agreed to normalize economic ties.

They agreed to freeze diplomatic recognition/de-recognition campaigns.

Kosovo, predominantly inhabited by Albanians, broke away from Serbia in 1999 and declared independence in 2008. It aspires to EU membership and aims to gain a visa-free regime for the EU zone.

But Serbia has not recognized Kosovo’s independence and sees its former province as its territory.

Kosovo is not a member of NATO or the UN.

In early December, European Council President Charles Michel said the EU will give an update on Kosovo's visa liberalization.

Kosovo is among a handful of countries in Europe outside the EU’s visa-free regime.