The United States welcomes the agreement between Kosovo and Serbia on measures to avoid further escalation of tensions.  We further commend the two countries’ agreement to concentrate fully and urgently on normalizing relations under the auspices of the EU-facilitated dialogue.  We support the EU-facilitated dialogue as the best path to advance Serbia’s and Kosovo’s European future.

We welcome the decision by the parties to put the interests of all their people at the forefront of their decision-making and take steps to improve the everyday lives of their citizens.  The two parties took a giant step forward today, with EU facilitation, towards assuring peace and stability throughout the region.  The United States applauds the constructive negotiations and encourages further progress toward the normalization of relations.