It's always better to be at negotiating table: Serbian leader

BELGRADE, Serbia

Ahead of Tuesday’s EU-Western Balkans Summit in Albania, Serbia’s president said that it's always better to be at the negotiating table.

Asked whether he had hesitated to attend the summit, Vucic: "I came to Tirana to get the views of EU and regional leaders, but also to say what Serbia thinks. It’s always better to be at the table, otherwise you’ll be on the menu."

The leaders of countries in the region, as well as European Council head Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, are attending the summit.

Vucic held a series of bilateral meetings ahead of the summit with regional leaders and the EU officials.

Vucic had previously said he would not attend the summit after the Kosovar government appointed a moderate Kosovo-Serbian politician as its new minister responsible for the country’s minorities.

Tensions between Serbia and Kosovo flared last month when ethnic Serbs in Kosovo withdrew from all central and local institutions to protest the decision to replace car license plates issued by Serbian authorities with those from Kosovo.

Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia in 2008, with most UN member states, including the US, UK, France, Germany, and Türkiye, recognizing it as a separate autonomous country from its neighbor.

But Serbia continues to insist Kosovo is its territory