On October 26, PIPS held a roundtable discussion on "Turning the page towards a new chapter? Building trust between Kosovo and Serbia".
The discussion gathered politicians, former ambassadors and also Mrs. Sonja Biserko from the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights. The participants discussed the issue on the normalization of Kosovo-Serbia relations and the possibilities of building trust between the two countries.
As a region with ethno-national diversity, the dark side of this reality lies in social divisions which are driven by several factors; the unhealed wounds from the wars in the 90's, the increase of populism, the inconsistency with the reality and the new order in the Balkans, and specifically the lobbying of Serbia against the state of Kosovo.
In conclusion, to build trust between the two sides there is still a need for work of elites and societies in both countries. The hope for mutual trust lies in defining common interests and objectives. The European Union is the biggest driver of reforms and development of society in the region, so the EU can be considered a key factor in building this trust.