The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, decorated Mr. Richard Grenell, former envoy of the American president for Kosovo-Serbia talks, for, as he said, "contribution to the development and strengthening of peaceful cooperation and friendly relations between Serbia and the United States".
The Serbian president who awarded this decoration to Mr. Grenell on the day of Serbia's citizenship said that Mr. Grenell "is one of the people who has often tried to have a very balanced approach which is extremely important for our country regarding Kosovo. Does he think differently from what the US administration thinks? Not completely, but he has always been ready to listen to the Serbian side", said the president of Serbia.
"Thank you to Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, the entire Serbian government and the people of Serbia for this great award," wrote Mr. Grenell, meanwhile, sharing footage from a ceremony in Belgrade where he was awarded the Order of the Flag.
Thank you to Serbian President @avucic , the entire Serbian government and people of Serbia for this great award - Today, I was given the highest honor of The First Order of The National Flag. pic.twitter.com/bLNlrzBcsn
— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) February 15, 2023
In 2019, former American President Donald Trump appointed Mr. Grenell as special envoy for the Kosovo-Serbia talks, while serving as the United States ambassador in Berlin.
He concentrated efforts for a normalization of economic relations between the parties and in 2020 clashed with the Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti, who led the coalition government with the Democratic League.
Disagreements fueled divisions in the ruling coalition which led to the fall of Mr. Kurti's first government.
Mr. Grenell mediated an agreement for the normalization of economic relations between the parties that was signed on September 4, 2020 at the White House, in the presence of former President Donald Trump.
The former president of Kosovo, Hashim Thaçi, after the agreement of September 4, honored President Donald Trump with the highest state order - the Order of Freedom - as a sign of gratitude for his contribution to the freedom of Kosovo, the strengthening of peace and stability in the region.