Babis discussed the withdrawal of Kosovo's recognition with Zeman

PRAGUE -- Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis met with the Czech President Milos Zeman to discuss the idea of Czech Republic's revocation of Kosovo's independence

Babis discussed the withdrawal of Kosovo's recognition with Zeman

PRAGUE -- Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis met with the Czech President Milos Zeman to discuss the idea of Czech Republic's revocation of Kosovo's independence

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Foto: Tanjug/AP/Petr David Josek, File

Babis told reporters that he would discuss the matter at Coordination meeting of Czech Foreign Policy, as he, as Prime Minister, cannot decide on this alone, on behalf of the government.

"We will address this at a meeting on foreign policy coordination. There will be a minister of the interior, a foreign minister, a president of the Senate, a speaker of the House of Representatives. This will be a topic to exchange views with other government colleagues," Babis told reporters after meeting with Zeman in the Lány Castle near Prague.

The Czech Prime Minister stressed that he could not decide on this alone, as prime minister on behalf of the government, and although he said last week that he saw no reason for the Czech Republic to change its policy and withdraw Kosovo's 2008 recognition, he did not categorically rule out such a possibility tonight.

"I do not say that. I discussed it with the President. The president said that our position was such as we were in NATO for two weeks, that it was a political decision, but that his position towards Kosovo's recognition was negative," said Babis. Zeman told Czech reporters last Thursday that he would not ask for the withdrawal of recognition if democratic parties without the burden from the past come to power in Pristina, though he does not believe it because unfortunately, democratic parties are very poorly represented in Kosovo.

The Czech Foreign Ministry warned on September 12th about the announcement by Czech President Milos Zeman that he would reconsider if Kosovo's withdrawal was possible, that the Czech Republic had fully recognized Kosovo as a definitive state, and that the Czech Republic had never withdrawn its recognition of any state.

In the Czech Republic, Zeman's initiative regarding Kosovo is generally seen as another provocative, empty gesture without any real basis, made to appeal to Serbs.

As for the opposition, especially those opposition parties that strongly opposed the air raids on Yugoslavia in 1999, this is just about Zeman's feeling guilty and apologizing to Serbian people for giving consent to the allied NATO forces to bomb Yugoslavia on behalf of Czech Republic due to Kosovo. Namely, Czech Republic could have prevented this with its veto, as NATO decides by consensus.