Albanian Language Media:

• COVID-19: 334 new cases, three deaths (media)
• Zemaj: No relaxation of Covid rules is expected (Telegrafi)
• Biden administration supports the EU-facilitated Kosovo-Serbia dialogue (RFE)
• Hoti: Kosovo committed to reaching normalisation agreement with Serbia (media)
• VV’s Nagavci rules out possibility of a coalition with PDK (Gazeta Blic/Klan)
• Balje: Srpska Lista interfering in elections (Prishtina Insight)

Serbian Language Media:

• 18 new cases of Covid-19 registered in Serbian areas in Kosovo (KoSSev)
• Dacic: Serbia and US “didn’t push under the rug” disagreements over Kosovo, however, relations have positive trend (Kosovo-online)
• Mihajlovic: We need strategic partnership with Washington (N1)
• Vucic: We will open discussion on compulsory military service (B92)
• Trial of Krstic and Shabani continues (Radio KIM)
• Dacic thanked Botsan-Kharchenko for Russian help during pandemic (RTS)
• Sputnik on White House foreign policy priorities, including Western Balkans (B92)
• Court of Appeals confirmed indictment against former minister Rikalo and others (KoSSev)
• “We don’t need Serbia’s permission to unite with Albania” (B92, Kosovo-online)

Humanitarian/Development:

• Corruption Perceptions Worsening In Balkans, Central Europe, Transparency Says (Balkan Insight)
• Container in refugee camp in Mitrovica engulfed by fire, six seek medical assistance (media)
• Journalist association and UN Women hold workshop on gender responsive budgeting (RTK) 

Albanian Language Media  

COVID-19: 334 new cases, three deaths (media)

334 new cases of COVID-19 and three deaths from the virus were recorded in the last 24 hours in Kosovo. 

230 persons have recovered from the virus during this time.

There are 6,501 active cases of COVID-19 in Kosovo.

Zemaj: No relaxation of Covid rules is expected (Telegrafi)

Outgoing Minister of Health Armend Zemaj said that for the time being no relaxation of Covid rules are expected. 

“We cannot allow ourselves the commodity of relaxing a certain measure that could damage the stability of the cases and the pandemic,” he said.

With regards to the vaccine rollout in Kosovo, Zemaj said: “We are working intensively. The good thing is we have secured the cooling chain and of course the first vaccines are expected to arrive in February.”

Biden administration supports the EU-facilitated Kosovo-Serbia dialogue (RFE)

The United States fully supports the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, facilitated by the European Union which is aimed at achieving a comprehensive agreement, the State Department said in a statement to Radio Free Europe.

“As President Biden said: a comprehensive solution is crucial to Kosovo and Serbia moving forward which will lead to mutual recognition; uphold the sovereignty and territorial integrity of both countries and strengthen their democratic institutions. It would increase security and prosperity of both countries, advance their aspirations for EU membership and other multilateral institutions and support the objective for a Europe united, free and in peace.”

The State Department also recalled the statement of the new Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, who told the Senate during his confirmation hearing that he applauded the efforts of the previous Trump administration on the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia. 

Hoti: Kosovo committed to reaching normalisation agreement with Serbia (media)

Outgoing Prime Minister of Kosovo Avdullah Hoti sent a congratulatory letter to the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken after his confirmation to the post.

In the letter, Hoti said Kosovo is grateful for the U.S. support. “We are committed to working with you to accelerate efforts to reach the normalisation agreement, centered on mutual recognition, between the Republic of Kosovo and the Republic of Serbia. This agreement would strengthen regional stability and enable both countries to realise their full cooperation potentials.”

He assured Secretary Blinken that Kosovo is also committed to work with the U.S. and the EU in strengthening the rule of law so as to be ready to join Euro-Atlantic structures. 

VV’s Nagavci rules out possibility of a coalition with PDK (Gazeta Blic/Klan)

Arberie Nagavci from the Vetevendosje Movement (VV) has ruled out the possibility of the party entering a coalition with the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK).

“There is no chance for such a coalition to happen. Our positions on the PDK are very clear and we are not even considering cooperation with PDK as an option,” Nagavci said.

Deputy leader of the PDK, Shaqir Totaj, is reported to have said today that they would be open to a coalition with VV on condition the party reflects on some of its actions. 

Balje: Srpska Lista interfering in elections (Prishtina Insight)

In a debate hosted by BIRN Kosovo’s Jeta Xharra on Wednesday, Duda Balje, the head of the Social Democratic Union, SDU, accused Srpska Lista of trying to influence the election of MPs in Kosovo’s non-Serb ethnic non-majority communities.

The Belgrade-backed Srpska Lista won all ten seats reserved for Kosovo Serbs at the Kosovo Assembly in October 2019, and will face little opposition in the parliamentary elections on February 14. In its report on the October 2019 elections, the EU’s observer mission stated that opposition parties in Serb-majority areas were “unable to mount effective campaigns due in part to intimidation of candidates, their families and voters in general.”  

According to Balje, whose SDU will compete for the three seats representing the Bosniak community in the upcoming elections, the party is now also seeking to instill MPs sympathetic to Srpska Lista among the ten seats reserved for Kosovo’s other ethnic non-majority communities.

“In the last election Srpska Lista had 10,000 votes more than they needed and will therefore try to split this vote between other candidates,” she told BIRN.

Nenad Rasic, who was leader of a Kosovo-Serb opposition entity, the Sloboda coalition, in 2019’s parliamentary election, echoed Balje’s concerns, adding that this plan was already being implemented. 

“Unfortunately [Srpska Lista] are sure that they will win all 10 MPs [representing Kosovo Serbs], and they have 10,000 surplus votes they want to distribute,” Rasic said, adding that a Bosniak candidate can become an MP with 2,500-3,000 votes, or a Roma candidate with around 1,500 votes.

Balje identified two initiatives as being backed by Srpska Lista in February’s election: Ujedijnena Zajednica (the United Community) led by Kosovo Bosniak Adrijana Hodzic, and the Roma Initiative led by Gazmen Salijevic.

The SDU leader stated that by backing these initiatives, Srpska Lista’s goal was to strengthen its position within the Kosovo Assembly. “If you get votes from Serbs, you are their pawn,” she said.

Slavisa Petkovic, a former MP at the Kosovo Assembly, supported Balje’s assertions, and argued that Srpska Lista’s motivation for seeking to gain a bigger voting bloc in the parliament was due to Vetevendosje’s strong position in the polls. 

See more at: https://bit.ly/3aqPBrB

Serbian Language Media

18 new cases of Covid-19 registered in Serbian areas in Kosovo (KoSSev)

Out of 93 tested samples over the last 24 hours, 18 were positive on Covid-19, the Crisis Committee of Mitrovica North announced today.

New cases were registered as follows: seven in Mitrovica North, six in Priluzje, two in Prizren, and one each in Zvecan, Gracanica and Kamenica.

At the same time 35 persons completed a two-week isolation period. The total number of active cases in the Serb-populated areas in Kosovo is 229.

A total of 99 persons died due to Covid-19 in the Serb-populated areas in Kosovo since the outbreak of the pandemic. 

Dacic: Serbia and US “didn’t push under the rug” disagreements over Kosovo, however, relations have positive trend (Kosovo-online)

Serbian Assembly Speaker Ivica Dacic said today relations between Serbia and the US over the last couple of years experienced a major positive trend, adding that the two countries “have not pushed under the rug” some disagreements they had, in particular when it comes to the Kosovo issue, but moved forward instead, Kosovo-online portal reports.

Dacic said Serbia expects that the new US President Joseph Biden and new American administration would use the elevated trend of mutual relations and from their side continue to enrich it with new forms of cooperation.

Speaking in a press conference on the occasion of presenting a survey on attitudes of the Serbian citizens towards the US, Dacic said the two countries moved forward, focusing on what brings them closer, rather than on what moves them apart.

“Were there better confirmation than the words of President Biden, at that time US Vice President who said in Belgrade four years ago that Serbia represents a crucial political and economic cornerstone for an entire region and that leadership of Serbia was extremely important for this part of Europe. Were there better confirmation of our new relations than the visit of President Vucic to Washington, his talks with the-then president Trump and a series of good agreements reached on that occasion”, Dacic said.

He added that Serbia and the US are on the right path to completely renew the partnership and friendship they had at the greatest period of their common history.

“That history is 140 years long. We need to recall that, in particular today when Serbia and the US stepped out from the period of mutual conflicts and now perceive one another as honest partners”, Dacic said.

Dacic also noted that building mutual respect was not an easy task, however, “the Serbian Government and the Government of the US invested major efforts to bring back relations between the two to the level they were at the times of the greatest part of their common history. I also took part in that process personally. As particularly important I perceive a joint work on nurturing, and sometimes bringing back from oblivion, events from our glorious common history when side by side we were in the first lines in a fight for a free and democratic world in both World Wars”, Dacic stressed.  

Dacic also said looking back to the past was important, but one foremost must deal with the future, adding that the survey on attitudes of the Serbian citizens towards the US was a good material to listen to the pulse of the citizens.

“We saw that huge percentage, almost half of the respondents, expect relations between Serbia and the US to continue improving in the next five or ten years, and they expect them to be the best, friendly relations at the level they were during the first and second world wars”, Dacic said.

Mihajlovic: We need strategic partnership with Washington (N1)

Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Zorana Mihajlovic said Thursday her country needed a document on strategic partnership with the US, and an office for better relations with that country, N1 reports.

She told the Parliament that many things had changed in the last several years. Serbia was politically more stable and economically more robust than seven or eight years ago, open to investments and relations with all countries.

“We celebrate 140 years of bilateral diplomatic ties with the US in 2021. Besides, we had an agreement in 2001, a memorandum on cooperation in 2018, and a week ago another memorandum on investments in infrastructure. However, we need a particular document – about the strategic partnership with the US”, Mihajlovic said.

She recalled that Serbia had such agreements with Russia, China, Azerbaijan, France, Italy, United Arab Emirates, but not with the US.

“There is not a single reason not to have such a document which could help us to bring our relationship to a higher level”, Mihajlovic said ahead of presenting a study ‘Serbia’s People Attitude Towards the United States.’

Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Belgrade Gabriel Escobar agreed it was essential to continue and deepen the cooperation, especially in the economy. The US policy was to boost economic and cultural cooperation with Serbia.

Vucic: We will open discussion on compulsory military service (B92)

President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, stated that at the meeting with army representatives, he discussed the introduction of mandatory military service, B92 reports.

He announced that a wide public debate on that would be opened in the coming months.

“We will talk before making any decision, because that has its advantages and disadvantages”, Vucic pointed out.

He pointed out that a bad side is that food provision alone costs EUR 70 million, and when the income for soldiers is provided, another EUR 1.2 to 1.8 billion should be set aside.

The good side, he points out, is that empty positions in Serbia can be filled and revived with the army personnel. Vucic said that several places will be filled with new units this year, in Priboj, Loznica, Bela Crkva in Banat, Pirot, Negotin and Surdulica.

“We don’t have a problem with professional soldiers like we had last year”, he said, noting that the problem is that they are being offered higher salaries elsewhere.

He said there were talks about problems at the meeting with the military leadership of Serbia.

“We talked, we have to worry, you know, about the current circumstances pertaining to Kosovo and Metohija, we have regional problems, we have a third problem concerning the geopolitical disputes of the great powers, in accordance with all that we have to take care of ourselves”, Vucic said.

“We have done a lot to improve combat readiness, to buy the most modern weapons”, he said, summarizing the work of the Serbian Army and the Ministry of Defense in 2020.

He added that in conditions that are not easy, he is satisfied with the work and engagement of our people.

“Our army is a factor of stability, security and a deterrent to anyone who would like to attack our country. There will be more investments in our system”, he said.

See at: https://bit.ly/2Yo3W2g

Trial of Krstic and Shabani continues (Radio KIM)

A trial of Zlatan Krstic and Destan Shabani continues today at the special department of Pristina Basic Court, Radio KIM reports. The two were accused of committing war crimes against the civilian population in Kosovo.

At today’s continuation of the trial, the trial chamber plans to interview four witnesses, which, along with the reading of material evidence, would end the evidentiary procedure”, lawyer Dejan A. Vasic told RTV Kim.

The defendants are accused that as members of the Serbian police during the war in 1999 they participated in the murders of four members of the Nuhaj family from Nerodimlje village, as well as inhumane treatment of the bodies of those killed.

Dacic thanked Botsan-Kharchenko for Russian help during pandemic (RTS)

Serbian Assembly Speaker Ivica Dacic spoke with the Russian Ambassador to Serbia, Alexander Botsan-Kharchenko about the current situation, health and economic consequences of the coronavirus pandemic, as well as challenges Serbia faces on political sphere and international relations, RTS reports.

Dacic used the opportunity to once again express gratitude to the Russian Federation for the help it offered to Serbia during the pandemic, noting in particular importance of Sputnik vaccines’ delivery, which he chose for his own immunization.

Dacic also expressed hope new shipments of the vaccines would follow shortly.

Ambassador Botsan-Kharchenko conveyed the invitation of the Chairman of State Duma of the Russian Federal Assembly Vyacheslav Volodin and Chairwoman of the Russian Federation Council Valentina Matviyenko to Ivica Dacic to soon visit Russia.

Given the pace of the immunization both in Serbia and Russian Federation, the interlocutors agreed the visit might take place in near future.  

Sputnik on White House foreign policy priorities, including Western Balkans (B92)

Although many analysts predicted that Western Balkan would not be high on the priority scale for the new American president Joseph Biden, he surprised them, B92 reports citing Sputnik portal article.

The White House has revealed that Western Balkans is among the six priorities of the new US administration. This means that Serbia must be ready for new challenges, primarily pertaining to the Kosovo issue, Sputnik writes.

As bad as it may seem that the Western Balkans are among the priorities of American foreign policy, which means reaching a comprehensive agreement between Belgrade and Pristina, the intensity of pressure on us cannot be too strong or last too long, Aleksandar Gajic from the Institute for European Studies opined.

After a telephone conversation between President Joseph Biden and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the White House announced that the Western Balkans are among the six priorities of American foreign policy. The issue of reaching an agreement between Belgrade and Pristina was found, side by side, with Afghanistan, Russia, China, Iran and Ukraine, where the American administration sees the biggest problems it would like to solve.

“The news of the conversation between Biden and Merkel on the priorities of joint action in foreign policy regarding the Western Balkans is not good for us. It speaks of their intention to put pressure on the Serbian side in a coordinated manner in order to reach a comprehensive agreement that would indirectly lead to recognition of Kosovo and Metohija as an independent state, and it joining international organizations”, Gajic further told Sputnik, who nevertheless notes that all this is not surprising for him.

Given the above mentioned priorities, the U.S. and German foreign policy consider Western Balkans as one in which it is easier to reach the goal than in other cases. It will be much harder to go with Iran, Ukraine… where they have disagreements about strategic interests, so it is understandable to put the Western Balkans on the list, he added.

“There is a partial overlap here, but temporarily, because at some point there will be a confrontation in relation to the great powers in the UN Security Council that support Serbia’s position on Kosovo and Metohija. I think that there is no essential coincidence between Germany and the United States on the issue of foreign policy on the territory of the whole of Europe and even the Western Balkans. Now it is a matter of tactical coincidence to realize some interests to the detriment of Serbs, but in the long run, their interests do not coincide”, Gajic said.

He also recalled that Merkel is withdrawing from the political scene and that the question is what kind of government will be formed after the September elections in Germany. That is why, he says, it can be expected that their unison and effort to act together will begin to weaken.

“On the other hand, I expect that Biden will also face big problems at home in America and that he will not be able to focus on foreign policy in the Balkans with such zeal”, he said.

Court of Appeals confirmed indictment against former minister Rikalo and others (KoSSev)

The Court of Appeals in Pristina has confirmed indictment for corruption against former minister in the Kosovo government from Serbian List Nenad Rikalo, secretary general of the ministry Kapllan Halimi and six more officials, Shefki Zeqiri, Ekrem Gjoka, Shkelzen Morina, Leon Thaci, Lindar Krasniqi and Alban Zeqiri, KoSSev portal reports, citing Pristina-based Gazetta Press.

Defense lawyers of Halimi, Zeqiri, Gjoka, Morina, Thaci, Krasniqi and Zeqiri filed a complaint against the decision of the first instance court which confirmed the indictment.

The Court of Appeals after reviewing the case files, and assessing the appellate claims, find out that complaints were unfounded, KoSSev portal reports.

“We don’t need Serbia’s permission to unite with Albania” (B92, Kosovo-online)

Former Kosovo Prime Minister, Ramush Haradinaj, stated that for the unification of Kosovo and Albania, they do not need Serbia’s permission, Kosovo-online portal reports citing Pristina-based Gazeta Express.

The President of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), Ramush Haradinaj, stated that this unification is not connected with an agreement that should be reached with Serbia, but that it is an internal decision of Kosovo.

He explained that Kosovo should come to unification in the same way as it did with the “army, Trepca or the decision for independence”. He pointed out that the unification with Albania is connected with several events.

“If the obstacles set by Serbia, as well as a part of the international community related to our recognitions or NATO membership, remain, because security is a priority, we have no choice but to go to a referendum with Albania”, Haradinaj said.

He emphasized that the request for unification with Albania is different from the request from the past.

“Earlier, it was requested that the union gets the approval of Serbia, now we are not asking for the approval of Serbia”, Haradinaj emphasized, Kosovo-online further reported.

He added that the goal is a union with Albania and that Kosovo institutions will continue to exist.

“The state of Kosovo will be in a union with Albania. The current Kosovo institutions remain. The responsibilities of Kosovo given by the Constitution remain, then there would be a Constitution of the Kosovo-Albania Union”, Haradinaj explained.

According to him, the project of exchanging territories failed.

He added that, if he becomes president, another solution will be found, which will be reached by consensus between institutions and parties, Kosovo-online portal reports.

See at: https://bit.ly/39oqfem

Humanitarian/Development

Corruption Perceptions Worsening In Balkans, Central Europe, Transparency Says (Balkan Insight)

With a few exceptions, the latest Corruption Perceptions Index for 2020 showed that most countries in Southeast and Central Europe either made no progress – or went backwards – in terms of perceived levels of public corruption.

Perceptions of public corruption worsened in most Southeast and Central European countries according to the newest Global Perceptions Corruption Index published by the international watchdog Transparency International, TI, on Thursday.

Bosnia and Herzegovina and North Macedonia again ranked worst in the Western Balkans, with 35 points out of 100 – 100 points being very clean and 0 being the opposite – and sharing 111th place in the list of 180 countries.

North Macedonia declined five places, down from 106th last year, while Bosnia and Herzegovina declined faster, by 10 places, from 101th place last year.

Bosnia and Herzegovina was one of 22 countries that TI said had seen a significant decline since 2012, together with Lebanon and Malawi.

Serbia’s and Kosovo’s rankings also worsened compared to 2019. Serbia declined by one point from 39 points to 38 and was ranked in 94th place in 2020, down from 91 the previous year.

Kosovo again scored 36 points and was ranked in 104th place, a decline of three places compared to 101 the previous year.

See more at: https://bit.ly/2MufrTc

Container in refugee camp in Mitrovica engulfed by fire, six seek medical assistance (media)

Zeri reports that early today a fire engulfed part of the refugee camp in Mitrovica. According to the Kosovo Police, six persons sought medical assistance but no major injuries were reported. 

“The camp has not entirely burnt but only one part which is in use,” spokesperson for the Kosovo Police in Mitrovica region, Avni Zahiti, said. He noted the firefighters and the police have gone to the scene and that it is not yet known what caused the fire. 

Telegrafi meanwhile reports that one container in the refugee camp was caught on fire which was used in the past by the Kosovo Police but currently housed refugees from the Middle East countries. 

Journalist association and UN Women hold workshop on gender responsive budgeting (RTK)

The Association of Journalists of Kosovo in cooperation with UN Women held two two-day workshops titled “Gender Responsive Budgeting”, as part of the regional project “Transformative Financing for Gender Equality towards more transparent, inclusive and accountable governance in the Western Balkans”, financed by the Swedish SIDA.

Participants discussed ways to broaden knowledge on what Gender Responsive Budgeting is, how to report on Gender Responsive Budgeting in Kosovo in an impartial, gender sensitive and ethical manner, and how gender inequalities can be addressed through GRB.