Serbia and Kosovo reached a landmark agreement in April 2013 within the framework of the EU-facilitated Dialogue. This Brussels Agreement, as it came to be known, aimed at normalising relations between Serbia and Kosovo by addressing the issue of the Serbian parallel administrative structures in Kosovo, especially in the north of the country, and sought to close one of the most complicated chapters of post-collapse Yugoslavia. Implementing the deal however has proved difficult; the 2014 elections in Serbia, Kosovo and the EU have drained some momentum from the talks, and opposition to the compromise persists on both sides.

There have been some important breakthroughs – on integrating Kosovo’s police and judiciary, for example – but momentum and goodwill appear to be waning. The European Union External Action Service (EEAS) has shifted some of its attention away from Kosovo and Serbia, towards the conflict in Eastern Ukraine, and the four northern Kosovan municipalities have remained largely out of Pristina’s reach. Tensions are likely to remain as long as progress is not made.

To this end, BIRN Kosovo and Internews Kosova have partnered with the Center for Research, Transparency and Accountability (CRTA) in Belgrade to monitor the implementation of these EU-brokered agreements in bi-annual reports and act as independent watchdogs. This project, called “BIG DEAL: civic oversight of the Kosovo-Serbia agreement implementation”, recently published its second report, assessing the situation on the ground over the past six months or so. Many of those involved in the report appeared at a recent Policy Dialogue at the European Policy Centre (EPC) to present their main findings and recommendations.