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Vetevendosje leader Albin Kurti’s interview to Top Channel

By   /  08/10/2019  /  Comments Off on Vetevendosje leader Albin Kurti’s interview to Top Channel

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Vetevendosje leader and candidate for Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, said in an interview for Tirana-based Top Channel on Monday that in the October 6 parliamentary elections, “the people of Kosovo decided that the weak state of Kosovo, because it is captured, cannot tolerate another government like the previous one, therefore, they brought about this change with their massive turnout in the elections”. Kurti said he will approach the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), because a coalition between the Vetevendosje Movement and the LDK is the right way forward. “We have a lot of work to do, because a lot of time has been wasted. Many opportunities have been abused in the past; therefore, this coalition must happen, and I hope we move faster than we have done in the past, in terms of cooperation between Vetevendosje and LDK”. Asked what would happen if Vetevendosje, as the winner of the election, does not manage to form the new government, Kurti said: “I believe we will manage to form a coalition. If God forbid, we don’t manage to form a coalition, I don’t know who will be given the second chance. It could be given to us again and that is how it should be. But if this doesn’t happen then we will go to new elections again”. Asked about the import tariff on Serbian goods and the resumption of talks with Belgrade, Kurti said, “we will not remove the tariff, but we will replace it with the principle of reciprocity. The tariff was never a policy of the Vetevendosje. I am not one of those who say that ‘this water can come from Serbia but instead of €1 it should cost €2’. I believe that the criteria for good bilateral inter-state relations is reciprocity. Serbia doesn’t recognise the certificates for the production of goods or license plates, it doesn’t accept anything from the Republic of Kosovo. This is unacceptable to all of us, especially to our future government. As far as dialogue with Serbia is concerned, in my first week in office I will start dialogue with the Kosovo Serbs. Dialogue from the bottom up and in addition to this, dialogue for development and integration and not for reconciliation. A Serb from Gracanica has done me no harm. Reconciliation happens when Serbia recognises Kosovo’s independence and pays for the war reparations. There is no reconciliation needed with a Serb from Gracanica. Also, in my first month in office, I will establish contacts with Mr. Borrell, the successor of Ms. Mogherini, who will be in charge of the EU’s foreign and security policy, the High Representative. And we will have a dialogue with Brussels for the dialogue with Serbia, so that we can have a well-prepared dialogue, with principles and a symmetrical dialogue, and not as has been the case so far. During the first month, we will make a balance of the 33 agreements we have signed with Serbia from 2011 to 2017, the six-year dialogue. It is not very clear to us what has been implemented, why certain agreements have not been implemented, and what has been the effect and impact of these agreements on the lives of the people of Kosovo. Then I will appoint a negotiating team, including the opposition, I will personally lead the negotiating team and I will present our demands to Serbia. Serbia asks what our offer is. Our offer to Serbia is our demands to Serbia. The debt it owes us. I am confident that the future dialogue will be way more solid and it will not lack transparency”.

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