In May 2023, significant clashes broke out in Kosovo when the central government in Pristina tried to impose ethnic Albanian mayors in the predominantly Serb-inhabited north. The resulting fighting led to over 40 NATO peacekeepers being injured and saw the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, heavily criticised by the United States and the European Union for destabilising regional peace and security. All this has once again highlighted the desperate need for a full and final agreement between Serbia and Kosovo. But while attention has long been focused on some form of autonomy, has the time come to reconsider a more radical option? Partition.

Following the collapse of Yugoslavia, Kosovo's declaration of independence in February 2008 has left the International community bitterly divided. However, it has also seen divisions within Kosovo. While ethnic Serbs in the central and southern parts of Kosovo accept the new state of affairs, the Serbs in the north have acknowledged Pristina's authority. However, calls for the four northern regions - Leposavic, Zvecan, Zubin Potok, and North Mitrovica - to be handed over to Serbia's control as part of a wider territorial adjustment, or 'land-swap', between Serbia and Kosovo has been steadfastly rejected by many Western countries. Indeed, talks aimed at a settlement based on this option in 2018 were blocked by Britain and Germany. Instead, international efforts have been directed towards autonomy in the form of an Association of Serb Municipalities. But a decade after the idea was first proposed, no progress has been made on the issue. Given the ongoing problems, is it time to revisit a territorial settlement that would finally allow Kosovo to gain full international acceptance and allow Serbia to move on?

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*VIDEO CHAPTERS*
00:00 Introduction and Titles
00:44 Autonomy versus Partition in Kosovo
01:58 Kosovo: Population and Location
03:00 Kosovo within Serbia and Yugoslavia
03:56 Kosovo Independence Campaign
04:57 The Kosovo Status Process
06:10 The Question of Northern Kosovo
09:04 The Need for a Final Kosovo Settlement
10:22 The Case for a Territorial Adjustment or Land Swap
12:36 The Wider Benefits of Partition
14:06 Is It Time to Discuss Partition?

*SOURCES AND FURTHER READING*
Kosovo | Prime Minister's Office
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Serbia | Office for Kosovo and Metohija
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UN Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999)
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Ahtisaari Status proposals
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Association of Serb Municipalities | General Principles | EU
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Dragon's Teeth: Tales from North Kosovo
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#Kosovo #Serbia #Partition

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