But the dialogue has also failed in crisis management, consistently overlooking underlying issues and avoiding taking a decisive stance on Serbia’s continued destabilizing efforts in Kosovo.

In one notable instance, Várhelyi echoed Vučić’s talking points about a U.N. resolution condemning the 1995 genocide in Srebrenica, saying he did not “think that stigmatizing the Serbian nation with collective guilt is a viable choice.”

The U.S. may prioritize bilateral agreements over multilateral efforts involving the EU, and focus on relationships based in economics rather than shared values.