Talks between Kosovo and Serbia are on "pause" since November last year, when the Government of Kosovo imposed a 100 percent tax on Serbian products.
The US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Matthew Palmer, in an interview with the BBC in Serbian, said that it is necessary to find a way for the two countries to return to the negotiating table.
"The taxes imposed by Kosovo on the products of Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina must be removed so that the dialogue can continue," Palmer is quoted as saying, reports Koha.net.
He did not want to give deadlines for when the agreement will be reached for the full normalization of relations between the two countries, but he said that "I want this to happen as soon as possible".
"It all depends on how willing the parties are to continue down this path - first to return to dialogue, then to reach an agreement," Palmer told the BBC.
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Palmer: The US supports the dialogue, we want the tax to be removed
The senior US official says that the US is part of the dialogue as a supportive partner and will do everything to encourage and enable both sides to reach an agreement.
"This is in their interest, but also of the entire region, the EU and the USA."
Palmer says the US had no role in canceling the Paris summit.
"We encourage the authorities in Prishtina to do what is necessary to continue the dialogue, as we also talk with the authorities in Belgrade about the parameters of the agreement."
Asked if the road to resolving the Kosovo-Serbia dispute could be an international conference like that of Rambuje in 1999, he says that it is not yet time for it.
"I am not sure if the moment has come when we will need an international conference, since the dialogue process has already started under the leadership of the European Union and some progress has been achieved," he said.
Palmeri does not believe that next year's American presidential elections will not greatly affect the tempo of the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, since, according to him, "this is constant during many administrations in Washington".
Even the US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Matthew Palmer, as well as the head of European diplomacy, Federica Mogherini, foresee tensions and the return of the "dark forces" of the past if the region does not take advantage of this opportunity.
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Palmeri does not rule out a Kosovo-Serbia agreement without mutual recognition
"Tensions lead to miscalculations, miscalculations can lead to violence, violence can escalate into conflict. So there are concerns, even though America is committed to reaching an agreement and supporting these countries on their way to the EU."
He says that these tensions are not only in the Kosovo-Serbia relationship, but throughout the Western Balkans.
