Kosovo’s outgoing foreign minister, Donika Gërvalla-Schwarz, has denied claims that health institutions are shutting down in the north, saying instead that “serious dialogue” is ongoing with Serb citizens there about the future of healthcare, education, and infrastructure.
“Health institutions are not closing in the north, ladies and gentlemen — on the contrary. We are engaged in a serious dialogue with our citizens in the northern municipalities, who belong to the Serbian community, about how healthcare, education, and infrastructure must look in Kosovo.
This is all about them — about what they need, how they want to live their lives as citizens of Kosovo,” Gërvalla said at the end of the UN Security Council session held in New York.
She added that the government’s goal is “integration, not segregation.”
“We do not want, nor do we need, ghettos for our Serbian citizens. What we need is integration, protection, and support for them. As a responsible government, we are taking serious steps to ensure that. That is why we are building bridges, schools, and hospitals — not walls between our communities,” Gërvalla stated.
However, she did not provide details on what kind of “serious dialogue” is taking place with Serbs in the north. So far, there have been no confirmed reports of direct consultations between residents of the Serb-majority northern municipalities and the outgoing government regarding the integration of education and healthcare into the Kosovo system.
About a month ago, the outgoing prime minister joined the campaign for recently held local elections and, in a video message in Serbian, called on Kosovo Serbs to integrate into the Kosovo healthcare and education systems. He described the existing “dualism” in these sectors as “unsustainable” and said the government wants to achieve unification “with the Serbs, not against them.”
Education and healthcare remain the only two sectors among Kosovo Serbs still functioning within the system of the Republic of Serbia.
The UN Security Council session, held in New York, featured the presentation of the regular six-month report by UNMIK head Caroline Ziadeh.
The representatives of Belgrade and Pristina — Serbia’s ambassador to the UN, Marko Đurić, and Kosovo’s foreign minister, Donika Gërvalla — once again presented sharply opposing views on the situation in Kosovo.
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