LOCAL PRESS
Vucic: Serbia will not change opinion about Haradinaj (Beta)
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Saturday that Serbia would not give up on justice and would not change the opinion about Haradinaj. He said to the reporters that there was a clear and undoubted indictment against Haradinaj. Serbian prosecution charged Haradinaj that he, as one of UCK commanders, was responsible for at least 76 murders. Serbia issued a warrant against Haradinaj based on which he was arrested in France last January. Vucic said on Saturday before Kosovo Assembly session was held on which the new government was formed, that Serb List would make a decision on their own whether they would join the Kosovo government or not. “It is on Serb List to decide whether they will join Haradinaj, Self-Determination or stay away from the government,” he said and added that Serb List was the one preserving existence of Serbian state in Kosovo and not opposition leaders in Belgrade.
Djuric: We will continue to support Serb List (RTS)
“I believe the Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija and in how they are creating their future. In the political sense, they are faced with choosing between plague and cholera and if they decide to support the government in which they will have their seats and in which they will be able to fight for the positions of their nation, we support them and we will continue to support the Serb List,” the Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric told RTS on Saturday evening news. He says that Ramush Haradinaj is an indicted war criminal for Serbia, but we will never throw stones at the Serb List and the people who are trying to survive surrounded in enclaves in Kosovo and Metohija,” explains Djuric, adding that the Serb representatives are united in coordination with the state of Serbia. “They will enjoy our support in all challenges and we will not criticize them, like some failed saloon politicians on Twitter, but we will fight with them for survival,” says Djuric.
As regards the dialogue, he says the biggest blow was given during the previous regimes when this was transferred from the United Nations and that the resumption of the dialogue will not be easy but that the Kosovo Serbs will continue to protect and defend their principles, and the state of Serbia its interests. “Regardless of this angering many Albanians, but for us, as long as there are institutions of the state of Serbia, this will remain part of our country and our southern Serbian province, and these people who are seating in that assembly today, these Serb representatives, are the only ones who have the courage to say clearly and loudly before these terrorists of the former UCK that this is Serbia,” said Djuric.
Serb List representatives: We are not fighting for positions but for the future (RTS)
Serb List representative Goran Rakic told a press conference in the Serbian government on Saturday that this list will be making its moves only in the interests of the Serb people in the region of Kosovo and Metohija, “without paying attention about what those who had never been in Kosovo and Metohija think, who maybe heard about Gazivode, Osojane, Gracanica and Strpce, but don’t know to show these places on the map”. “Security, better life, economic position, survival of the Serbs is the only goal for which we will fight. We cannot choose Albanian political representatives, but our people, who were elected with a vast majority, will fight for the Serbs, work through institutions, assembly, on the ground and at platforms. We received the support of the government and the Serbian President, as well as the Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija for the decisions we had made,” said Rakic.
Serb List spokesperson Igor Simic told the same press conference that this list is fourth by strength, with ten MPs, and that the government in Pristina depends from its votes. “This sufficiently shows why we are entering the entire story and the power that we have in passing decisions in the future,” said Simic. “There will be the Community of Serb Municipalities, and as regards the Kosovo army, listen to today’s expose and you will see that there are no such things,” said Simic. “We cannot choose Albanian representatives. We can choose who will share, together with us, the responsibility for a better life of the Serbs,” said Simic, adding the Serb List representatives are not fighting for functions but for the future of the Serbs in the province. “Let Pajtic, Obradovic and others move from their positions and let them give concrete examples, and not only objecting to those who are doing their jobs,” said Simic.
“By joining this government, we will get the chance to fight for the program of the Serb List,” the candidate for the Minister of Agriculture Nenad Rikalo told the same press conference. The fight for three ministries was difficult, and the approach of the Serb List was not blackmailing, but correct, and this correctness will build respect with the Albanian people in the future as well. Rikalo says that the three received ministries are crucial for the Serb population.
Ivanovic: Serb List’s decision expected (Danas)
Chairman of Civil Initiative Serbia, Democracy, Justice (SDP) Oliver Ivanovic said before the formation of new Kosovo government that it was expected that Serb List would support the coalition around PDK, whose candidate for Prime Minister was Haradinaj. He told Danas on Friday that Serb List made several mistakes among which was lack of discussion how would the future Kosovo government treat Serbs, but waited for the agreement between Haradinaj and Pacolli. “Also, it is wrong that SL representatives have been saying since the beginning that ‘there will be no negotiations with Ramush Haradinaj’. They should not put themselves in such situation anymore. Albanian side in Kosovo gave most votes to Haradinaj at the past parliamentary elections, so, Serbia could not choose which Kosovo Albanians they would like to talk to,” Ivanovic said.
REGIONAL PRESS
Dodik: Idea of possible referendum on status of RS will be discussed later (RTRS)
Republika Srpska (RS) President and SNSD leader Milorad Dodik stated after completion of the two-day SNSD Congress in Bijeljina on Sunday that as a responsible political party and considering the international circumstances and lack of consensus with members of the Alliance for Changes (SzP), SNSD believes that the idea of possible holding of the referendum on the RS’ status in 2018 should be considered later. “It is impossible to reach consensus with SDS which does not want independence of the RS, PDP does not want independence of the RS, (NDP leader Dragan) Cavic does not want independence of the RS, but they are ready to act against any independence by attacking an idea coming from the other side”, Dodik said. He reminded that it was concluded at the Congress that only the genuine Dayton-based B&H is acceptable for SNSD, stressing that any creations made by High Representatives or any other institutions at the level of B&H, including those related to behavior of the SzP in joint institutions, are absolutely unacceptable. Dodik warned that creation of an environment and political conditions for a new political organization is on stage in B&H, adding that this process started with deceits related to the population census when an illusion on B&H being the Bosniak-majority country was created. He also said that SNSD expects to win in the 2018 general elections in B&H and the party is determined to win the run for the Serb member of B&H Presidency and for the RS President, as well as to ensure absolute majority when it comes to the RS Assembly. Conclusions passed at the SNSD Congress also include support to the declaration on protection of the Serb people that is being prepared by the RS and Serbia, as well as support to Serbs in the Federation of B&H whose position today is endangered more than it was the case before.
Govedarica: Idea of referendum is not act of RS Assembly but of SNSD (TV1)
SDS leader Vukota Govedarica responded to SNSD leader Milorad Dodik by saying that idea of the referendum on the status of Republika Srpska (RS) is not an act of the RS Assembly but of SNSD. He added that Dodik is aware of his manipulations and now has to look for reasons why he will not hold the announced referendum on independence. Govedarica also stressed that Dodik wants to share his responsibility for all frauds with opposition, adding that Dodik is dealing with irresponsible policies while the policies he (Govedarica) is dealing with are responsible ones. Govedarica stated that there is no Serb who would not like that all Serbs live in one state, but added that all Serbs are not those who decide. He reminded that the RS Assembly adopted two decisions on referendums, one that was never published in the Official Gazette, and another which results were never published in the Official Gazette. Govedarica also said that Dodik does not have support of world powers for such project.
Borenovic: Opposition does not want to take part in further isolation and disappearance of RS (BN TV)
SNSD leader Milorad Dodik stated in Bijeljina on Sunday that he gives up on the referendum on status of Republika Srpska (RS), due to international situation and lack of consensus in the RS on that question. PDP said that the RS is paying the price and faces isolation due to irresponsible Dodik’s moves. PDP leader Branislav Borenovic said that the opposition does not want to take part in further isolation and disappearance of the RS. He stressed that Dodik’s “crazy politics” lead to disappearance of the RS and added that they will stop him. According to unofficial information, giving up on the referendum on independence of the RS and the state judiciary are conditions for taking Dodik off the US black list.
Grabar-Kitarovic says ICTY will lose its credibility if second instance verdict in ‘Prlic et al case confirms joint criminal enterprise; Grabar-Kitarovic to ask Putin about his countr’s ties with Serbia (N1)
Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic told TV N1 on Sunday that the ICTY will lose its credibility if the second instance verdict in the ‘Prlic et al’ case, which is expected to be rendered in November, confirms the joint criminal enterprise from the indictment. She stressed that six former leaders of the Herzeg-Bosnia led by Jadranko Prlic must not be sentenced for the joint criminal enterprise, noting that this qualification also mentions late Croatian President Franjo Tudjman and other late Croatian officials. This statement sparked reactions in the B&H public, which deems that it actually represents a political stance of the Croatian President, as well as her concern that the second instance verdict might confirm that Croatia committed aggression against B&H and that Tudjman wanted creation of a Greater Croatia.
MP in B&H House of Representatives (HoR) Semsudin Mehmedovic said that he is surprised by the fact that Grabar-Kitarovic reacts to the verdict to B&H citizens, stressing that her reaction shows that Zagreb fears of the verdict that might accuse the official Croatia of taking part in aggression against B&H.
Bosniak member of B&H Presidency and SDA leader Bakir Izetbegovic said that the policy coming from Croatia has double meaning – on one side Croatia extends the hand of friendship to B&H, while on the other side the Bosniaks are being pressured in order to be in a defensive position and to accept certain constitutional solutions.
According to Zagreb officials, the second instance verdict in the ‘Prlic et al’ case should be regarded as the verdict to individuals, not as the verdict to the Croatian people as a whole. Josko Klisovic of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of Croatia stated that no one in Croatia thinks that the joint criminal enterprise actually happened, reminding that Bosniaks and Croats have signed the Split Declaration in 1995 in order to jointly ensure the defense of B&H. He added that there is a series of documents showing that Croatian and B&H authorities were harmonized in defending B&H’s sovereignty.
The ICTY rendered in 2013 the first instance verdict sentencing six wartime officials of the so-called Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia, Jadranko Prlic, Bruno Stojic, Slobodan Praljak, Milivoj Petkovic, Valentin Coric and Berislav Pusic to a total of 111 years in prison for crimes against humanity, violation of laws and customs of war and severe violations of the Geneva Conventions committed in the period 1992-1994 in B&H.
Grabar-Kitarovic says she will discuss Russian-Serbian military cooperation when she meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “We need to talk about the area of Southeast Europe, we will talk about Russian-Serbian military cooperation,” Grabar-Kitarovic has told TV N1. She said her upcoming trip to Moscow and meeting with Putin “did not happen overnight” and that Croatia “has the right to it.” Often, Grabar-Kitarovic continued, she has been “accused and misinterpreted” when it comes to her attitudes towards the Russian Federation. “Croatia has the right to develop relations with Russia. If frequent meetings of (German) Chancellor Merkel with Putin are not being questioned, I do not see why meetings with the Croatian president would be questioned,” she said.
Speaking about Croatia’s relations with its neighbors, Grabar-Kitarovic pointed out that she was “very unpleasantly surprised and did not expect Hungary to block the entry of Croatia into the OECD.” She said it was “expected” that Slovenia would block Croatia’s membership – as it did – “but not Hungary” – and announced that she will travel to Hungary on Tuesday and “put the issue on the table to discuss it.”
Speaking about the Court of Arbitration’s decision concerning Croatia’s border dispute with Slovenia, Grabar-Kitarovic said she “hopes that reason will eventually prevail because incidents suit nobody” and that she “hopes there will be none.”
The Croatia president did not want to comment on the statements made by the Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim) member of the Presidency of Bosnia-Herzegovina Bakir Izetbegovic, who was responding to her stance that Islamic terrorism from Bosnia could become a threat to the region and Europe.
Croatian President responds to criticism from Bosnia and Herzegovina (Jutarnji list)
Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic responded in writing to the Srebrenica Mothers Association, which has “taken away” her title of the “Queen of the Balkans”. The Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) association, which commemorates the victim of the genocide committed by the Bosnian Serb forces in 1995, accused the Croatian President of Islamophobia and stated that they were wrong when several years ago they honored her with the “Queen of the Balkans” nickname, reports Jutarnji List.
In her letter, the President said she was never the “Queen of the Balkans”, but just the President of Croatia and that her primary task was to protect the interests of her own country. Also, the President expressed great respect for Islam, B&H and the town where the terrible crime was committed, adding that B&H will not have a stronger advocate of its European path than Croatia.
“Although I did not receive it personally, I have read about your open letter in the media. I would like to thank you for your sincere emotions and thoughts. You know how much I respect your efforts to keep and promote the truth about the genocide in Srebrenica. I was with you two years ago at the commemoration in Srebrenica, and as a mother and a woman, I felt your sorrow and pain. And my Croatian people have experienced similar horrors, and many Croatian mothers have told me about their grief. Since you have addressed me as the “Queen of the Balkans”, I must immediately point out that I have never seen myself as such, since I am President of Croatia, nothing more and nothing less than that.
My first duty is to protect the national interests of Croatia and the national interests of the Croatian people and all Croatian citizens. Also, I have the responsibility to build peace and relations of cooperation and friendship with all states, first and foremost with our neighbors. There is no country with which it is more necessary to build such relationships than Bosnia and Herzegovina. There are few countries in the world which are so connected, historically, economically, commercially, culturally, as our two nations. Also, Bosnia and Herzegovina is a homeland of the Croat nation as well. My concern for its well-being is part of the desire to achieve prosperity for all peoples and citizens of B&H, regardless of their religion and ethnicity. I want Bosnia and Herzegovina to realize all of its development potentials and I am ready to provide all possible support. B&H does not have and will not have a stronger advocate for its European path than Croatia.
I emphasize my sincere respect for Islam, both because of its principles and my personal experience. I also greatly appreciate the contribution of Croatian citizens of the Islamic faith during the Homeland War. I have warned about the dangers of extremism which are or could be inspired by the distorted interpretations of the faith I perceive as the religion of peace; I have never spoken about Islam, Bosniaks or B&H as those who could be its source or instigators. I condemn any statement of intolerance or an act of hatred towards anybody, from wherever it comes.
From all this, it is quite clear that I do not perceive B&H and its citizens as a threat to Croatia. It is therefore completely unacceptable that my political activity is in any way compared with “statements coming from Serbia in the period that preceded the aggression on B&H.” But, I am convinced that you share my view that international terrorism and any extremism are the greatest threat to peace in the world and the common civilizational values, and that it is our shared duty to prevent everything that can diminish or distort our closeness.
Thank you for your invitation to visit B&H. I would be pleased if I had an opportunity to meet again with you,” wrote the President in her message.
The President has been under criticism from B&H recently due to her comments which emphasized and, according to some, exaggerated the threat of Islamist terrorism coming from B&H.
Hungary joins Slovenia in blocking Croatia’s OECD Membership (Jutarnji list)
No doubt, there is room for improvement in Croatia’s relationships with its neighbors. Hungary will not support Croatia’s bid for membership in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) due to its behavior towards the Hungarian oil company MOL and its CEO Zsolt Hernadi, the Hungarian Foreign Ministry announced on Friday, reports Jutarnji List.
In a statement reported by the Hungarian MTI news agency, the Ministry says that the situation regarding MOL’s investments in Croatia and the Croatian behavior towards MOL’s CEO Zsolt Hernadí were the main reasons for withdrawing the support. Croatia has indicted against Hernadi, along with former Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader, accusing him of bribing Sanader with 10 million euros to sell part of INA’s shares to MOL. Hernadi has rejected the accusations, but he has refused to appear in a Croatian court. Croatia has issued an international arrest warrant against Hernadi, who now claims that it is causing problems for his business activities. Hungary and Croatia are also in dispute over MOL’s role in INA, the Croatian national oil company. Each side owns a little bit less than 50 percent of INA’s shares, and there is hardly any agreement about the future development of INA. Late last year, the government announced that it planned to buy back MOL’s share in INA, but the idea seems to be delayed, probably indefinitely.
Hungary announced that it would also not support the Romanian membership bid for the OECD due to the closure of a Catholic high school in Targu Mures, which was attended mostly by Hungarian children, the Ministry said. The Foreign Ministry stated that Hungary had officially announced it would not support the governments in Zagreb and Bucharest at an OECD Council meeting in Paris.
Slovenia announced a few days ago that it would not support Croatia’s membership in the OECD because it believes that the Croatia does not respect international law since it does not want to implement the arbitration decision on the Croatian-Slovenian border issue and claims that Slovenia has compromised the arbitration process. Slovenia announced its position on Wednesday at a meeting of EU ambassadors in Brussels, when the European Commission reported on the current state of affairs regarding the possible future expansion of the OECD.
The head of the Paris-based organization, Jose Angel Gurria, was due to present his proposal for future expansion on Friday.
Among EU members states which are not yet members of the OECD, Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia have expressed interest in joining. From outside of the EU, Argentina, Brazil and Peru are interested in joining the organization as well.
The OECD currently has 35 member states, the most economically developed countries in the world. At the beginning of the year, Croatia sent a letter to the OECD about its intention to join the organization, hoping to start negotiations after a decision on the new round of enlargement.
Boycott not sustainable, dialogue necessary (Dan)
EU delegation in Montenegro said it expected the government and the opposition to start a dialogue to overcome the current political situation. “As the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini and the European Commission’s European Neighborhood Policy & Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn said, boycotting Parliament isn’t a sustainable solution,” the delegation headed by Aivo Orav stated. The parliament boycott has lasted since the last general elections. According to opposition representatives, it will not be stopped any time soon. As a reminder, the period after the elections was marked by turbulent events in the legal and political life of Montenegro. There were political protests and tensions over the lifting opposition MPs’ immunity, followed by contradictory decisions by the competent prosecutor’s offices related to remanding the deputies in prison. These events raised many questions about political and legal consequences. They particularly showed that the Montenegrin institutions are not ready to deal with such events in the right way. According to many estimates, the political crisis in Montenegro is the deepest one since independence restoration.
Last year, representatives of opposition parliamentary groups unanimously decided not to recognize the results of parliamentary elections because they were allegedly held in non-democratic conditions. They explained this by saying that the day of the state coup, as the State Prosecutor’s Office characterized the events, cannot be the day of free elections.
Vukovic: There is no healthy opposition in Montenegro (Pobjeda)
The goal of a part of the opposition, to have a female common candidate at the presidential elections, is not a goal set for the benefit of Montenegro and its interests, but a clear hit on DPS, said DPS MP Miodrag Vukovic. “Presidential elections haven’t even been scheduled, and we already hear their noise. They do not care of our national and political interests, they just want to defeat DPS,” Vukovic said. He called to mind the situation of 5 years ago, when the opposition supported Miodrag Lekic. “They were 100% behind him, but now they are calling him a despot and a power-hungry politician,” Vukovic said.
Darmanovic: Montenegro contributed to victory over ISIS (CDM)
At the informal meeting of foreign ministers of the EU member states and candidate countries (Gimnasts), Minister Srdjan Darmanovic said that Montenegro has made significant contributions to the victory over the ISIS through participation in the Global Coalition. The meeting was held in Tallinn within the Estonian Presidency of the EU. The main topic of the informal meeting was the prevention of radicalism and violent extremism. “Participating in the Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan, but also through regional mechanisms of cooperation in the area of security, such as the Adriatic Charter A25 and the Adriatic trilateral Montenegro – Albania – Croatia, Montenegro contributes to the security cause. Strengthening these forms of cooperation can demonstrate, in a concrete, useful and convincing way, the willingness and ability of the region to be part of the solution to global security challenges,” Darmanovic said.
The officials agree that terrorism and the spread of radical ideologies are one of the biggest security challenges of the present, which requires a collective response and strengthening of cooperation on the European and global level. At the meeting, Darmanovic confirmed Montenegro’s commitment to the fight against terrorism and violent extremism. He pointed out that Montenegro, as a new member of NATO and a candidate for EU membership, strongly supports all efforts made by these two organizations to neutralize the threat of radicalism and violent extremism. He also emphasized importance of further strengthening the exchange of information and data on ISIS and other extremist organizations, which is an effective way of preventing terrorist attacks.
The Minister held short bilateral meetings with his counterparts from the Great Britain, Poland, Spain, Portugal, Hungary, Lithuania, Denmark.
Mandic and Knezevic to write Declaration on Preservation of the Serbian Nation (Pobjeda)
New Serb Democracy’s (NOVA) leader Andrija Mandic plans on meeting with the representatives of Serbian political and cultural institutions in Montenegro. The purpose of the meeting would be to establish the platform for writing the Declaration on Preservation of the Serbian Nation. This is what NOVA’s spokesman Jovan Vucurovic told Pobjeda. Mandic intends to invite to the meeting all those involved in the Serbian House project. “The leader of Democratic People’s Party (DNP) Milan Knezevic and representatives of the Matica Srpska, Serb National Council and other Serb institutions will be invited,” Vucurovic said.
According to unofficial information obtained by the newspaper, the text of the platform will be determined at the meeting. Representatives of the Serbs from Montenegro expect the platform text to be included in the final version of the Declaration on the Preservation of the Serbian Nation.
The Declaration is supposed to be adopted by the Serbian and Republika Srpska’s parliaments in November.
Dimitrov in Tallinn: I have a great story at this hopeful moment for Macedonia (Meta)
I have a great story to tell EU ministers at this hopeful moment for Macedonia, said Macedonian Foreign Minister, Nikola Dimitrov, in the Estonian capital, Tallinn. The informal meeting of foreign ministers of the member states of the European Union and the candidate countries for EU membership is being held there. Dimitrov hopes that negotiations for Macedonia’s EU membership can start next year. “I am here to convince that this is also in the interest of Europe”, said Dimitrov, who was welcomed by the EU High Representative Federica Mogherini.
At a meeting with Dimitrov, Hahn gave his support for the government’s reforms (Meta)
At the margins of an informal meeting with the ministers of foreign affairs of the countries members of the European Union and the countries – candidates for the EU membership that took place in Tallinn, the Head of the Macedonian diplomacy, Nikola Dimitrov has had a meeting with the EU Commissioner Johannes Hahn, announced the Macedonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “At the meeting, the Head of the Macedonian diplomacy has introduced the EU Commissioner with the achievements during the government’s first 100 days in office and he greeted the progress and gave his support for the process including the steps it undertook to improve the good neighborly relations,” said the press release.
Also, Minister Dimitrov took part in the working lunch with the countries-candidates, during which the EU’s policy for enlargement and the status of the reforms in the countries candidates were discussed. Dimitrov also had discussions with colleagues from Bulgaria, Greece, Netherlands, Great Britain and Slovenia.
Dimitrov: Negotiations with Greece will definitely begin at the end of this year (Meta)
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikola Dimitrov, expressed strong confidence that negotiations with Greece over the name dispute, which have gone on for a long time, will continue by the end of the year. “During a visit by Greek Foreign Minister, Nikos Kotzias, last Wednesday in Skopje, we discussed confidence building measures. We have not yet started negotiations. They will start definitively before the end of the year. I do what I think should be the work of diplomats: solving problems, opening doors and creating friends. Perhaps we cannot change history, but we can certainly try to influence the future and make life better for our citizens today. This is our goal”, says Dimitrov.
President Meta Signs Edi Rama as Prime Minister (ADN)
Albanian President Ilir Meta decreed on Saturday as Prime Minister Edi Rama. “Based on Article 93 and 96, paragraph 1 of the Constitution, with the proposal of the party that have the majority of seats in parliament, Edi Rama is decreed as Prime Minister of Albania,” signed Meta. This is the second mandate for Rama as Prime Minister won at the elections of 25 June. The President also decreed on Sunday the new Council of Ministers proposed by the Prime Minister Edi Rama. Meta gave his approval for the 15 ministers of the cabinet without delaying the process. The decree was deposited in parliament and at the Center for the Official Publications.
Albanian parliament elects Gramoz Ruci as new speaker (ATA)
Albania’s parliament elected Gramoz Ruci as its new speaker as the new 140-member parliament convened on Saturday afternoon for its constitutive session following the June 25 general election. The senior politician from the ruling Socialist Party, Gramoz Ruci was the only candidate for the post proposed by 55 MPs from the Socialist parliamentary group. Albania’s new parliament of 140 lawmakers has been sworn in and a left-wing Socialist Party politician has been elected speaker. The lawmakers on September 9 voted 80-40 to approve the nomination of Gramoz Ruci as speaker. The main opposition Democratic Party voted against Ruci, and the smaller opposition Socialist Movement for Integration Party left the session in protest before the vote. The Socialist Party holds 74 seats in the 140 seat parliament following elections on June 25. The Democratic Party has 43 seats, while the Socialist Movement for Integration has 19. The Party for Justice, Integration, and Unity has three seats, with the Social Democratic Party of Albania holding one.
INTERNATIONAL PRESS
As China Moves In, Serbia Reaps Benefits, With Strings Attached (The New York Times, by Barbara Surk, 9 September 2017)
SMEDEREVO, Serbia — When President Xi Jinping of China chose an industrial town on the Danube River to announce that Serbia was at the center of a $900 billion “One Belt, One Road” infrastructure initiative, it was a bold declaration that his country had set up shop on Europe’s southeastern flank. Standing on the grounds of a Communist-era steel plant here in Smederevo, about 28 miles east of Belgrade, the capital, Mr. Xi promised last year to pour money into roads and railways to create a transport corridor for Chinese goods to flow to West European markets.
Called the New Silk Road, the route would run from China to Germany, via the port of Piraeus in Greece, passing through the Balkans. Mr. Xi’s decision to extol his signature policy in Serbia, one of the poorest countries in Europe, was a canny move that put the initiative on a collision course with the European Union’s projects in the region. His strategy also exploited the European Union’s troubled relations with the West Balkan countries seeking to join the bloc, and signaled that — as the United States retreated from the world stage — China was aiming to expand its influence right into the heart of Europe. But what was in it for Serbia? During Mr. Xi’s state visit, he said China would bring more jobs, improve living standards and lift the country’s economic growth. More important, by opening its economy to China, Serbia cemented Beijing’s support against European Union pressure to recognize Kosovo’s independence. “It would not be immodest or wrong to say that Serbia is China’s main partner in Europe,” Serbia’s minister for construction, transportation and infrastructure, Zorana Mihajlovic, declared about Mr. Xi’s overtures. Some in China have questioned the economic viability of Beijing’s investment spree. And outside of China, some fear that China’s ambitions would keep the authoritarian leaders of countries like Serbia in power and leave the nations deep in debt and stuck with environmentally flawed projects. But Mr. Xi’s words saved 5,200 jobs in Smederevo, a city of 100,000 that has depended on the steel mill for decades. China’s state-owned HBIS Group bought the steel mill, the only one in Serbia, for 46 million euros, or nearly $55 million at current exchange rates. Its previous owner, U.S. Steel, sold it to the Serbian government in 2012 for a symbolic $1. “We want to create a win-win situation,” Mr. Xi said, shortly after the sale. Now, China’s ambitions in the Balkan region have set up a potential clash with the European Union’s plans — with countries like Serbia placing themselves in the middle.
Promises Not Kept
Mileta Gujanicic, a steelworker and union leader, is one of those who hope China fulfills its vision for the Smederevo mill: He has worked there for 40 years and says he got used to the ways of the Americans, whom he called “the aristocracy of the industrial world.” “All my life I have been told that capitalism, particularly the American type, was bad,” Mr. Gujanicic, 63, said. “But we workers have been valued, well paid and respected when the Americans ran this place.” The Chinese approach to running the mill, he said, is sharply different. So far, the new owners have maintained their pledge to retain jobs. But none of the promises Mr. Xi made during his visit have been kept. Workers’ contracts are veiled in secrecy, safety standards have fallen, maintenance is at the bare minimum, and contact between the owners and the employees does not exist, he said. The erosion of workers’ rights and the employers’ disregard of labor laws are troubling, he said. Serbia’s ambitious president, Aleksandar Vucic, has embraced Mr. Xi’s visions. Mr. Vucic was elected in May with a stated goal of bringing the Slavic nation of seven million people closer to the West. He has vowed to transform a country that was once part of the Communist-ruled Yugoslavia into an attractive destination for foreign investment, after years of international sanctions for Serbia’s role in the Balkan Wars during the 1990s.
Corridors of Power
While China sets its eyes on the region, the European Union is still the most powerful force there, and the bloc’s projects are surging ahead. The styles of the two powers could not be more different. For example, to prevent a new round of conflict in the Balkans, the Europeans drew up a plan in 2014 to connect old foes like Serbia and Albania with new highways and rail lines to speed travel and the flow of goods. The initiative, known as the Berlin Process and championed by the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, is part of a broader European integration plan for the Balkan countries. The plan aims to align the countries’ national transport laws with those of the European Union and strengthen cooperation across contested Balkan borders. At the last regional summit meeting, in July in Trieste, Italy, the participating countries — Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia, all seeking to join the European Union — also agreed to create a regional economic zone as part of an effort to consolidate a market of 20 million people. But Balkan officials have long complained of a protracted bureaucratic process, taking as long as a year, for getting funds from Brussels for the work. Crucially, while Serbia’s president has embraced the initiative, Albania and Kosovo have political reservations, fearing that the infrastructure project and a common regional market would become a substitute for full membership in the European Union. In Serbia’s case, its traditionally most generous patrons — Russia and European Union members such as Germany — have demanded that Belgrade alter its governing style in exchange for funds. Brussels has stipulated a series of judicial, political and economic changes before Serbia can join the 28-member bloc. And Russia, seeking to keep Serbia as far away from the West as possible, has promised weapons and energy at discount prices as a deterrent against NATO forces in Kosovo and Montenegro, which joined the alliance in May. Russia also controls much of Serbia’s energy sector and has commanded considerable influence over successive leaders in Belgrade elected since the fall of the strongman Slobodan Milosevic in 2000.
Balkans Novice
Now comes China, a relative novice in the turbulent Balkan region, offering cash with what appear to be only a few — but important — strings attached. For China, the attraction to Serbia is evident in its high state subsidies, lower environmental standards and diminished pressure for transparency in business dealings. But Serbia must embrace Beijing’s model of state-led development. Serbia is also likely to be saddled with huge debts. Most of the investments are loans from Chinese banks, typically for 20 to 30 years with a 2 percent to 2.5 percent interest rate. So far, China has lent Serbia about €5.5 billion for the construction of bridges, highways and railroads. China is also pouring money into Serbia’s neighbors, raising fears that Beijing’s largess in the Balkans is not just about business, but also about geopolitics. Ms. Mihajlovic, Serbia’s infrastructure minister, bluntly said that it was both — a sign to officials in Brussels that their Balkan headache had now become a migraine. Ms. Mihajlovic said Beijing was defending Serbia’s interests in the world, and she praised China for not recognizing what she called an “illegally declared independence of Kosovo.” Recognizing the sovereignty of Serbia’s former and majority-Albanian province is a key requirement for Belgrade to join the European Union. Elsewhere in the Balkan Peninsula, China has lent Montenegro hundreds of millions of dollars and thousands of its workers to build a strategic but costly highway between Belgrade and Montenegro’s Port of Bar on the Adriatic Sea. China first tested its construction model in Serbia in 2010, when it brought hundreds of workers from the state-owned contractor China Road and Bridge Corporation to build a mile-long bridge over the Danube. In 2014, Premier Li Keqiang inaugurated the €170 million bridge, built with a loan from the Export-Import Bank of China and named after the Serbian scientist Mihajlo Pupin. Another major infrastructure deal is a planned high-speed rail line connecting Belgrade and Budapest. The 217-mile link will include a cargo track along the old passenger line that once carried the trains immortalized in the Agatha Christie novel “Murder on the Orient Express.” But some European countries view with skepticism China’s leadership role in economic integration in their own backyard, fearing that the “One Belt, One Road” initiative’s new norms, along with the Balkans’ old governing values, will challenge those of the European Union, according to Michal Makocki, an expert in Europe-China relations. “Chinese economic corridors and infrastructure projects replicate China’s preference for state-led rather than market-based decisions, with the politicization of investment, subsidy and contract decisions, rejecting the E.U.’s model of open and transparent bidding procedures,” Mr. Makocki wrote in a policy paper for the European Council on Foreign Relations. Mr. Gujanicic, the union leader from Smederevo, says Serbia’s leadership has bulldozed labor laws in exchange for foreign funds. “I can’t say I understand Chinese Communism, but what they’re doing here is destroying us,” Mr. Gujanicic said of Serbia’s leaders. “They are collecting points for the next election with other people’s money. All they care about is to stay in power on the back of our hard work.”
Owen Guo contributed reporting from Beijing.
